Does aortic valve replacement benefit frail patients?

Study suggests carrying out a frailty assessment in patients before the procedure
Reuters Health

Questions have been raised over the value of aortic valve replacement in elderly patients with severe frailty in the wake of a study that shows they often experience functional decline or lack of improvement afterwards.

The Israeli-led researchers conducted telephone interviews with 246 older patients (mean age of 78.1) to assess self-reported ability to perform activities and physical tasks in the year after they had undergone either a transcatheter (TAVR) or surgical (SAVR) aortic valve replacement.