A Sunshine Coast octogenarian can’t wait to return to the golf course after undergoing landmark heart surgery at St Vincent’s Private Hospital Northside.
Sippy Downs’ Glen Kirkwood was the 200th TAVI operation for the surgical team of Dr Andrew Clarke and Dr Roland Hilling-Smith.
A TAVI (transcatheter aortic valve implantation) procedure is a high-tech repair of the heart’s aortic valve, which allows blood to flow from the left ventricle to the rest of the body.
The 82-year-old had the vital procedure in December, 12 years after receiving open heart surgery to repair a faulty heart valve.
He had a pacemaker installed several years ago but was unable to keep up his walking routine and his passion for playing golf three times a week. He experienced spells of shortness of breath and dizziness last year, to the point where he would occasionally feel faint and fall.
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He said he was incredibly grateful to the team for their skill and expert care.
“To be honest, if the surgeons had said to me that they needed to do open heart surgery again this time to fix the problem, I don’t think I would have had another operation,” he said.
“The recovery from the last open heart surgery was long and terrible, plus I’m 12 years older now, so I don’t know how I would have coped.
“But when the St Vincent’s doctors told me they could do keyhole surgery, that clinched it for me.”
Originally a carpenter by trade, Mr Kirkwood spent 25 years working in sales and marketing for glass manufacturer Pilkington Australia, then later in life returned to his trade, building everything from cinema seats to coffins.
“I might have made coffins, but I had no desire to make my own and end up in one of them any sooner than was necessary,” he said.
Mr Kirkwood was able to head home just in time for Christmas.
“I feel great and couldn’t be happier,” he said.
“I was walking and moving around the ward the day after the procedure.
“I’m thankful that I had the operation before Christmas and that I was able to be home to spend it with the family.”
More than five weeks after the procedure, he is edging closer to the end of his recuperation period before he can get back to playing golf with friends.
“I can’t wait to be back swinging a golf club again with my mates, enjoying the outdoors and enjoying life to the fullest,” he said.
The minimally invasive procedure extends the life, and restores the quality of life, of older and more vulnerable patients who would otherwise face significant health challenges from undergoing open heart surgery.
A recent Australian study found that the severe heart condition called symptomatic aortic stenosis could affect close to 100,000 Australians and could kill more than 50 per cent of sufferers without treatment.
With an ageing population, the number of new cases is likely to increase by another 10,000 cases each year.
The TAVI procedure, which usually takes around an hour, is designed to reduce the impact of the potentially fatal heart problem, a stiffening of the aortic valve leaflet from calcification (which naturally forms over many years).
St Vincent’s Northside has been doing TAVI procedures since 2015 and its medical teams had performed a combined 670 procedures by the end of 2023.
The first TAVI procedure in the world was done in France in 2002 and while the initial global take-up was gradual, with improving technology and further training of surgeons and medical teams in Australia, it has accelerated rapidly.
Cardiologist Dr Hilling-Smith travelled to the UK in 2015 and spent a year training in the TAVI technique and brought his skills and knowledge back to St Vincent’s where the procedure has been embraced by surgeons and patients alike.
“There’s two advantages of the TAVI procedure,” he said.
“Firstly, you can perform what is a life-saving procedure on older people, especially those in their 70s and 80s – those who might have been too unwell or too frail to come through open heart surgery in good shape.
“There’s a massive difference in the recovery – it can be up to six months for open heart surgery for some people.
“But with the TAVI procedure, they’re usually just in hospital for two nights after the procedure before they can go home and their recovery is usually straight forward.
“Obviously, they don’t need as much post-operative care from family and friends than they do after open heart surgery and that’s very beneficial for the patient but also for everyone around them.
“Previously, before we could do TAVI, there might be two years or less of life expectancy for patients with symptomatic aortic stenosis who weren’t deemed suitable for open heart surgery for a range of reasons.
“Now, with intervention through TAVI, the patient’s life is extended by around 10 years and their quality of life is usually restored and often enhanced.”
The heart issue is often detected by a GP using a stethoscope as part of an annual health check. This is then usually followed by another more accurate diagnostic test.
During the TAVI, the surgeon will usually insert a wire through the groin but if the valves are narrow, they might have to go through the patient’s shoulder to access the aorta.
The valve is placed inside a catheter, or flexible tube, and guided through a blood vessel in the groin to the heart, where the surgical balloon is inflated and, rather than replacing the damaged valve, the new one sits securely within it, using a stent made of circular metal mesh. The prosthetic valve – made from pig or cow tissue – is inserted, which is effectively like putting a foot into a sock.
Dr Clarke said the TAVI procedure has been “a game-changer for older Australians”.
“The procedure is now very common. The technology is continuing to improve and our surgical teams, who are already excellent, are getting better at it all the time,” he said.
“Around 1 per cent of the population have congenital heart issues so aortic valve issues can present with anyone in this group at any stage from birth to old age – although most of the procedures we do are in older patients.”
Undergoing TAVI should alleviate most, if not all, of the patient’s symptoms and they’re quickly able to return to most normal activities.
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