According to the American Heart Association, around 5 million Americans have heart valve disease (HVD), which involves damage to one or more of the heart valves. However, public awareness is dangerously low. As a result, 25,000 people in the U.S. die from HVD every year.
The National Heart Valve Disease Awareness Day on February 22 aims to help people recognize the specific risks and symptoms of heart valve disease, improving detection and, ultimately, saving lives.
“Because patients are often under diagnosed, the improvement of diagnostic methods will increase the number of people with HVD,” said Prof. Christian M. Spaulding of Paris-Descartes University. “Over 100,000 patients require heart valve intervention every year in industrialized countries. Artificial heart valves are life-savers.”
Xeltis is joining forces to improve awareness of heart valve disease and its treatment options. Xeltis is developing restorative heart valves that aim to help patients live better lives by overcoming the limitations of existing options.
Click here to find out more about Xeltis’ ongoing research.
