NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center Earns Recognition as a Mitral Valve Repair Reference Center from the American Heart Association and the Mitral Foundation

NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center has received the Mitral Valve Repair Reference Center Award from the American Heart Association and the Mitral Foundation for a demonstrated record of superior clinical outcomes resulting from evidence-based, guideline-directed degenerative mitral valve repair.

This award recognizes NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center’s contribution to advancing best practices in the surgical treatment of mitral valve disease, a common valvular problem which occurs when irregularities develop in the heart valve between the left heart chambers.

The Mitral Valve Repair Reference Center Award was developed to identify, recognize, and promote the nation’s recognized medical centers for mitral valve repair surgery. NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center earned the award for demonstrating adherence to evidence-based treatment guidelines as well as an ongoing commitment to reporting and measuring quality and outcome metrics specific to mitral valve repairs.

The recommended treatment for degenerative mitral valve disease is mitral valve reconstruction, as opposed to valve replacement since valve repair is associated with improved survival and fewer long-term complications. Many patients who would benefit from a valve repair receive a replacement valve instead, which has a higher rate of death or complications within five years after surgery. 

“The Mitral Valve Repair Reference Center recognition is a testament to the NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center and Weill Cornell Medicine cardiac surgery team’s dedication to quality and excellence,” said Dr. Stephanie Mick, director of robotic and minimally invasive cardiac surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center and the Carrie and David Landew Associate Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Weill Cornell Medicine. “For patients with mitral valve disease, this recognition is an added assurance that they are in good hands for a mitral valve repair.”

More information about the American Heart Association and Mitral Foundation Mitral Valve Repair Reference Center Award is available on www.heart.org.    

This story first appeared on NewYork-Presbyterian's newsroom.