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Ho Chi Minh City: Successful Implementation of Percutaneous Pulmonary Valve Replacement
Doctors at the University Medical Center Ho Chi Minh City (UMC) have successfully performed a percutaneous pulmonary valve replacement — a minimally invasive procedure that eliminates the need for open-heart surgery — on a 14-year-old patient diagnosed with pulmonary valve stenosis.
A team of doctors performing percutaneous pulmonary valve replacement for a patient.
According to UMC, the hospital has successfully mastered and applied this advanced technique, marking a pioneering achievement in Vietnam. This breakthrough provides significant benefits for patients, including faster recovery times and shorter hospital stays.
The patient, identified as T.N.N.T., 14 years old, from Binh Duong Province, was diagnosed with pulmonary valve stenosis. Previously, at the age of two, she had undergone corrective surgery for Tetralogy of Fallot — a complex congenital heart defect involving four cardiac abnormalities. However, in recent months, she experienced increasing shortness of breath during physical activity.
Echocardiography and MRI revealed pulmonary valve regurgitation, causing blood to flow backward from the pulmonary artery into the right ventricle — a common postoperative complication following Tetralogy of Fallot repair.
Instead of performing open-heart surgery, which involves high risks and longer recovery, doctors opted for a percutaneous approach to replace the pulmonary valve.
Dr. Cao Dang Khang, Head of Pediatric Cardiac Surgery at UMC, explained that the medical team used a metal stent structure resembling a blood vessel, on which an artificial heart valve was mounted. The entire device was compressed into a catheter and inserted through a large blood vessel in the thigh to reach the diseased pulmonary valve.
Using an advanced angiography imaging system, doctors accurately positioned the artificial valve at the site of the narrowed or leaking pulmonary valve. Once deployed, the valve expanded and began functioning like a normal heart valve.
Hospital representatives presented flowers to congratulate the patient following the successful procedure.
Following the intervention, the patient’s condition was stable. She was able to walk the next day and was discharged after three days of observation. One week later, her follow-up showed full recovery — no shortness of breath, no fatigue, and she had resumed normal study and daily activities.
At the Pediatric Cardiac Surgery Department of UMC, many children require pulmonary valve replacement after congenital heart surgery. The successful adoption of this minimally invasive technique offers patients a new, less invasive, yet highly effective treatment option.
Professor Truong Quang Binh, a leading cardiology expert at UMC, shared that after receiving technical transfer and training from international specialists, UMC doctors have now fully mastered this advanced procedure.
So far, the hospital has successfully performed the percutaneous pulmonary valve replacement on five cases, and is progressively expanding its capability to apply similar transcatheter valve replacement techniques for both adults and children.