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Mitral Valve Experts Connect Live At The AATS Mitral Conclave in New York City!

Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: May 4, 2023

Yes!!! For the first time since COVID-19 began, the world's leading mitral valve surgeons are connecting in-person at the AATS Mitral Conclave in New York City from May 4 to May 5. During this special event, over 1,000 healthcare professionals from 50 countries gather to discuss the latest advances for the management and treatment of mitral valve disease and related cardiac disorders including atrial fibrillation.

Dr. David Adams

Although, the conference just started a few hours ago... Here are some pictures from this extraordinary event. That is Dr. David Adams, a Program Director of the AATS Mitral Conclave, the Cardiac Surgeon-in-Chief of Mount Sinai Health System, and a leading mitral valve surgeon who performs over 400 mitral valve operations per year. As you may know, Dr. Adams performed heart valve surgery on many patients from our community including Bono from U2.

AATS Mitral Conclave Grand Ballroom Opening Session

There will be over 45 educational and interactive sessions during the AATS Mitral Conclave that will be guided by an international faculty of mitral valve specialists and pioneers in the field. Above you can see a picture of the opening session of the AATS Mitral Conclave.

It's been great seeing many extraordinary physicians, friends and supporters of the HeartValveSurgery.com community. Below is Dr. Vinay Badhwar, a leading robotic mitral valve repair surgeon and Executive Chair at WVU Heart & Vascular Institute in Morgantown, West Virginia.

Dr. Vinay Badhwar

It's always great to see Dr. Marc Gillinov, the Chairman of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at the Cleveland Clinic, who has successfully treated many patients from our community including Ginny, Lisa and Randy.

Dr. Marc Gillinov

At the AATS Mitral Conclave, we've already seen several fascinating devices used during mitral valve repair and replacement operations. Below, you can see a model of the annuloplasty rings from Edwards Lifesciences.

Mitral Valve Repair Rings by Edwards Lifesciences

In addition to the repair rings, we're also getting a first-hand glimpse of the latest innovations specific to mitral valve replacement. Here are a few of the mitral valve replacement devices from Abbott.

Below is a close-up picture of a mitral valve replacement from Medtronic.

It was great to see Dr. T. Sloane Guy, the Director of Minimally Invasive & Robotic Cardiac Surgery at Georgia Heart Institute in Gainesville, Georgia. Dr. Guy is a mitral valve specialist who uses minimally invasive techniques to treat mitral regurgitation.

Dr. T. Sloane Guy

As up to 35% of patients with mitral valve disease have atrial fibrillation, I was happy to see Dr. Niv Ad at the AATS Mitral Conclave. Dr. Ad specializes in the use of the Maze procedure to treat atrial fibrillation (AFib).

Niv Ad, heart surgeon, with Adam Pick at Mitral Conclave

Dr. Niv Ad

It was great to meet several new surgeons that we recently started working with. For example, That's Dr. Michael Ibrahim from Penn Medicine Heart and Vascular Center from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Dr. Ibrahim just helped us create some excellent educational content for the recent Mitral Valve Disease Awareness Week.

Dr. Michael Ibrahim

The team at Abbott have been wonderful supporters of the HeartValveSurgery.com community. So, it was wonderful to connect real-time with Chris Waddell and Michael Cox.

Adam Pick with Mitral Conclave Attendees including Chris Waddel and Michael Cox

Many Thanks To All The AATS Mitral Conclave Attendees & Organizers!

On behalf of our patient community, thanks so much to all the attendees and organizers of the AATS Mitral Conclave.

We realize how challenging it must be to plan and manage this conference for the first time after several years due to the pandemic. That said, the AATS Mitral Conclave is amazing!!! We really appreciate the AATS Mitral Conclave and all the attendees for helping mitral valve disease patients live better, longer and healthier lives.

Written by Adam Pick - Patient & Website Founder

Adam Pick is a heart valve patient and author of The Patient's Guide To Heart Valve Surgery. In 2006, Adam founded HeartValveSurgery.com to educate and empower patients. This award-winning website has helped over 10 million people fight heart valve disease. Adam has been featured by the American Heart Association and Medical News Today.

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