Transcatheter aortic valve implantation in Germany

Over the past years, there has been a tremendous evolution of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) that turned a novel revolutionary approach to a mature concept. Peri-procedural complications and mortality rates have markedly decreased; hence, TAVI became an integral component of the treatment strategy for patients with severe aortic stenosis and now is the preferred therapy in elderly patients with moderate to high or prohibitive operative risk. This successful development would not have been possible without the joint efforts of clinicians, scientists, engineers, and many others from around the world. In this context, Germany has been one of the forerunners in implanting transcatheter heart valves, as evidenced not only by the high numbers of procedures, but in particular by some individual pioneering achievements. Here, we picture German contributions in the field of TAVI that had impact on clinical practice, including first-in-man experience, CE mark trials, randomized studies, large registries, and other procedurally relevant aspects.