Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation

Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVI) is becoming a widespread therapeutic alternative to surgery for patients with symptomatic aortic stenosis (AS) who are deemed to be at high or prohibitive surgical risk, with more than 80,000 procedures performed to date in over 40 countries worldwide [1]. A lower risk profile and lower mortality have been reported in women than men after TAVI at medium-term follow-up [2], while other studies found similar or worse survival compared with males [3]. In this setting, the effect of gender may be relevant to understanding the timing and appropriateness of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).