New heart valve treatment for Scots

DOCTORS have welcomed the decision to make a heart valve procedure available to Scottish patients who are too high-risk for open-heart surgery.

The treatment has been on offer in the rest of the UK for several years, prompting cardiologists to urge the Scottish Government to introduce it north of the Border.

About 100 people have been identified as being suitable for transcatheter aortic valve implantation (Tavi), whereby a new valve is fed into the heart through a small incision in the groin or chest.

A Scottish Government spokesman said health secretary Nicola Sturgeon had instructed the NHS that a Tavi service should be set up in Scotland following growing evidence regarding its effectiveness.

A spokesman for the UK Tavi Forum said he hoped the first patient would receive Tavi in Scotland in the next few weeks.