A new medication can slow the narrowing of aortic valves and potentially eliminate the need for open heart surgery to replace aortic valves. Scientists from the University of Montreal say the treatment is based on raising high-density lipoproteins (HDL), the “good” cholesterol, in patients suffering from aortic valve stenosis.
Aortic valve stenosis, in which the aortic valve is narrowed causing a difference in blood pressure between the heart and the rest of the body, is the most common form of heart disease in America. Without surgery, its victims are in danger of heart failure and sudden death. About 50,000 people undergo aortic valve replacement surgery in the United States each year.
In an animal study, after only two weeks of injections of a drug based on raising HDL levels, the aortic valve openings returned to almost normal compared to a 13 percent improvement in the control group which only eliminated a high fat diet.
“We are delighted to see that the new type of drug used, based on HDL, led to the regression of the aortic valve stenosis in an experimental model,” said lead scientist Dr. Jean-Claude Tardiff. “This new medical option could possibly provide us with an alternative to the cardiac surgery of aortic valve replacement.”
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