Austin Health: Matters of the heart

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We all know our heart matters...

Imagine you were told your heart was not doing too well. That unfortunately you had as little as a few months to live.

The TAVI procedure saved Cliff's life, pictured here with his wife Oratai.

However, there is a procedure that can help you, that will provide you with many more years of good health. Better still, it is a non-invasive procedure that lets you get back home within just a few days.

A procedure that has helped many patients admitted to Austin Health's Cardiology Department. Patients like Cliff Mitchell.

Once upon a time, people with a blocked aortic valve, like Cliff, had to undergo open heart surgery, an invasive procedure that meant the person had to be cut open. They then faced weeks, if not months, of recovery.

You can donate right now to help more patients like Cliff.

Today, new technology such as the Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation, or TAVI for short, is not only non-invasive but it is literally saving lives.

The TAVI procedure saved Cliff's life. An active 75 year-old grandfather, Cliff's heart stopped beating during a badminton game at a Master's Tournament in Tasmania. If Cliff did not have the TAVI procedure he would have been dead within two years.

Even though Cliff's life was saved, there is one missing piece of equipment...

We need your help

That missing piece of equipment is the software that can help enhance TAVI procedures for cardiac patients.

This software helps cardiac staff better visualise a patient's heart and accurately determine the correct size aortic valve to place into the patient. The software is essential in the pre-operative planning of TAVI procedures.