Percutaneous mitral valve repair: The MitraClip device

Abstract

Chronic mitral regurgitation (MR) is the most common cardiac valvular disease with more than 4 million people in the United States alone suffering from moderate or severe MR. Left untreated, chronic MR results in serious consequences. Surgical correction with mitral valve repair or replacement remains the mainstay of therapy for MR. Nevertheless, a large proportion of patients may not be offered treatment due to concerns over surgical risk. This unmet therapeutic need for a less invasive approach led to a marked explosion in the development of a variety of transcatheter approaches to treat mitral regurgitation in the past decade. The majority of these devices are based on principles learned from surgical mitral valve repair techniques. Inspired by the Alfieri surgical technique, the MitraClip edge-to-edge repair system is the most advanced technique with the highest safety and efficacy to date. In this review, we discuss the current status of the MitraClip repair system in the treatment of mitral regurgitation.