Recent Evidence and Initial Experiences of Transcatheter Edge-to-Edge Repair of the Mitral Valve in South Korea

Abstract

As a percutaneous technique for the reduction of mitral regurgitation, the MitraClip system (Abbott Vascular, Abbott Park, IL, USA) for transcatheter edge-to-edge repair of the mitral valve was developed in 1998 and first used in 2003. Its main advantage is being less invasive than surgery, because it can be performed through a transcatheter approach without any hemodynamic compromise. Recent studies have shown that this procedure reduces symptoms and improves functional capacity with low complication rates. Two randomized clinical trials have investigated the use of this technique for functional mitral regurgitation. The Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety approved its use for degenerative mitral regurgitation in 2019, and this procedure started to be performed in Korea in January 2020. Its use for functional mitral regurgitation was also approved in Korea in 2020. In this article, recent evidence on transcatheter edge-to-edge repair of the mitral valve and our initial experiences in Korea will be reviewed.