West Monroe, LA – Glenwood Regional Medical Center, a Steward Family Hospital, today announced it is the first hospital in the region to complete groundbreaking transcatheter aortic valve replacements (TAVRs). TAVR is an innovative new procedure for cardiac patients who may be high-risk or too sick for traditional open-heart surgery. The procedure uses a catheter to replace a failing heart valve, making it much less invasive than open-heart operations.

“By making investments in new technologies like TAVR, Glenwood Regional Medical Center is continuing to elevate the standard of care and provide a superior patient experience,” noted Dr. Joseph Weinstein, Chief Medical Officer at Steward Health Care. “Steward is proud to offer this service, first in Massachusetts at St. Elizabeth's Medical Center, and now in Louisiana at Glenwood Regional Medical Center.”

Dr. Thomas R. Smith, a practicing physician at Glenwood Regional Medical Center, successfully performed the first TAVR procedure at the hospital. Glenwood uses the Edwards SAPIEN 3 Transcatheter heart valve to treat high-risk and intermediate-risk patients with aortic stenosis (AS), one of the most common heart valve diseases. Aortic stenosis impacts more than 2.5 million Americans over the age of 75 annually, and without treatment, the condition is life-threatening. Yet many patients refuse or are denied open-heart surgery, the traditional treatment for aortic stenosis. Compared with open-heart surgery, patients who undergo TAVR spend less time in the hospital and are able to recover more quickly and get back to their everyday activities.

“By using TAVR, we’ll be saving lives and allowing our patients to spend less time in the hospital and more time at home with the families they love,” said Jeremy Tinnerello, president of the Glenwood Regional Medical Center. “We are proud to be bringing this incredibly important procedure to the state of Louisiana.”

In November, Glenwood Regional Medical Center was awarded an ‘A’ by the Leapfrog Group’s Fall 2018 Hospital Safety Grade, which recognizes hospitals’ efforts to protect patients from harm and meet the highest safety standards in the United States.

Glenwood Regional Medical Center is part of Steward Health Care, the nation’s largest private, for-profit physician-led health care network in the United States, which leverages technology, innovation and care coordination to provide safe and high-quality care in the communities where patients live. Steward Health Care Network, Steward’s network of primary care providers and specialty providers, also operates in Louisiana.

Changing the Face of Treatment for Patients with Aortic Stenosis