Caval Valve Implantation

Transcathetertherapy has expanded the treatment options for patients with heart valve disease. Interventional therapy for aortic, mitral, and pulmonic valve disease is well established; however, catheter-based approaches to tricuspid regurgitation (TR) are still in early stages of development. For some of the interventional concepts to TR, including the edge-to-edge-repair, transcatheter annuloplasty, the tricuspid spacer, and caval valves, procedural feasibility and favorable early clinical outcome have been demonstrated in small compassionate case series. This article reviews the pathophysiological background and current evidence for caval valve implantation and examines the potential role of this approach for the treatment of severe TR.