State-of-the-art of transcatheter treatment of aortic valve stenosis and the overview of the InFlow project aiming at developing the first Polish TAVI system

Initial experience of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) or replacement (TAVR) has appeared as a promising minimally invasive technology for patients disqualified from surgical treatment (SAVR). Safety and efficacy of TAVI has been analyzed and assessed through numerous registries and trials. Furthermore, results obtained from comparative TAVI vs. SAVR trials proved that both treatments can be considered equal in terms of post-procedural mortality and morbidity in high-risk, as well as lower risk patients. However, there are still some issues that have to be addressed, such as higher chance of paravalvular leakage, vascular injuries, conduction disturbances, malpositioning and the yet unmet problem of insufficient biological valves durability. Recent technological developments along with the learning curve of operators prove a great potential for improvement of TAVI and a chance of surpassing SAVR in various groups of patients in the near future. In pursuit of finding new solutions, the CardValve Consortium consisting of leading scientific and research institutions in Poland has been created. Under the name of InFlow and financial support from the National Center for Research and Development, they have started a project with the aim to design, create and implement into clinical practice the first, Polish, low-profile TAVI valve system, utilizing not only biological but also artificial, polymeric-based prosthesis. This review focuses on current developments in TAVI technologies including the InFlow project.