Transcatheter Therapies for Mitral and Tricuspid Valvular Heart Disease

Transcatheter therapy for mitral and tricuspid valve disease has the potential to offer patients a less invasive treatment with faster patient recovery and similar efficacy to surgery. The initial success of balloon dilation for pulmonic and mitral stenosis followed by transcatheter aortic valve replacement for severe aortic stenosis has ushered in an entire medical subspecialty focused on such therapies. This chapter describes transcatheter treatments for mitral regurgitation, including leaflet edge-to-edge approximation, and other novel therapies that repair annular dilation, use left ventricular remodeling devices, or fully replace the valve. Similar devices have been developed to treat tricuspid regurgitation, the “forgotten valve.” The pathophysiology of this valve lesion and a number of promising transcatheter repair techniques, including valve replacement, are described. We can anticipate that transcatheter mitral and tricuspid valve therapies will become an increasingly important option for many patients.