Patients with Heart Valve Disease benefit from new expert-led clinic

Patients at George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust who have been diagnosed with heart valve disease are benefiting from a new service which is the first of its kind at the hospital.

The Cardiac Physiologist-led heart valve clinic was created to offer expert assessments by staff who have had extensive training and experience in the assessment of native and artificial heart valves.

The clinic, which was created by the Trust’s Cardiology department, has allowed for the early detection of any possible complications and early signs of degeneration of the valves or general condition of the heart.

“The Physiologist-led clinics have been a rewarding and exciting new extension to the cardio-respiratory unit,” said Davina Sadyakeerthy, Highly Specialised Cardiac Physiologist

“Heart valve clinics offer superior patient education, faster surgical referrals, and higher adherence to guidelines than traditional healthcare settings.

"We are so proud to have achieved this. Our aim is to excel at patient care and we believe the clinic will have a tremendous impact on improving the quality of care and patient outcomes.”

The Physiologist-led clinic works closely with the entire Cardiology team to ensure patients who attend receive comprehensive care.

Heart valve disease is where one or more of the four valves in your heart does not work as it should. This is where a valve either doesn’t open fully (called stenosis) or doesn’t close fully (called prolapse) and may be leaky (called regurgitation).

This means your heart has to work harder to pump blood around your body.

Heart valve disease does not always need treatment, but some people will need medicines or surgery.

The Trust would like to thank all colleagues who worked tirelessly to create the Cardiac Physiologist-led heart valve clinic.