[Percutaneous aortic valve implantation].

Surgical replacement of the aortic valve is an effective treatment modality in patients with degenerative and calcific aortic stenosis. In an aging population, however, increasing numbers of patients have comorbidities that make surgical intervention a high-risk procedure. Recent developments in catheter technology have made less invasive alternatives possible, allowing the delivery of a bioprosthesis to the aorta by the femoral artery or transapical route. Promising first results of a randomized trial have recently been published. Although this publication certainly heralds a new era in the invasive treatment of valvular heart disease, further randomized trials with long term follow-up of mortality, morbidity and cost-effectiveness will be mandatory.

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