14 Dec 24. Swift intervention aids elderly heart patients

Highlighted in the latest edition of the staff newsletter, SCOPE, patients with aortic stenosis – a narrowing of one of the heart’s main valves – have had to wait until symptoms become severe before undergoing valve replacement.

However, findings from the EVOLVED study, indicate that patients can avoid symptoms such as chest pain, dizziness and fainting if surgery is performed at an earlier stage of the condition. 

The EVOLVED study is a randomised trial of early surgery in asymptomatic patients with severe aortic stenosis and objective evidence of left ventricular decompensation (myocardial fibrosis on magnetic resonance imaging). Cardiac MRI is used to look for heart scarring in patients with severe aortic stenosis but no symptoms. Patients with confirmed heart scarring will then be randomised to either early valve replacement surgery or to the current treatment strategy. This consists of continued monitoring of the valve over time waiting for patients to develop symptoms.

24 cardiac centres across Australia and the UK participated in the trial and it involved 224 patients with severe aortic stenosis but only with mild symptoms. 

Our imaging facilities based within QMRI performed all the imaging for the Edinburgh centre on behalf of the study. 

To read the full article please see the following link:

Swift intervention aids elderly heart patients