Saint Alphonsus Heart Institute

Saint Alphonsus Valve and Cardiothoracic Programs are the area leader in many key metrics from The Society of Thoracic Surgeons and the Transcatheter Valve Therapy Registry. As one of the largest valve implanting centers in the northwest, our team provides several unique procedures and surgeries only offered at our center.

For example, our cardiac experts have extensive experience performing minimally-invasive and non-invasive procedures including transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). TAVR, a non-invasive therapy, enables us to replace diseased aortic valves without an incision to the patient's chest or ribs.

Dr. Robert Saeid Farivar, cardiothoracic surgeon and Medical Director of the Saint Alphonsus Cardiothoracic Heart Program, was named the Site Principal Investigator of the SUMMIT clinical trial, which uses the transcatheter mitral valve replacement (TMVR) technique to implant the Tendyne Mitral Valve System – the first and only of its kind in the region. A TMVR procedure replaces the patient's mitral valve without an incision to the chest or ribs.

Dr. Farivar is the first heart surgeon in the United States to perform a TMVR procedure and the first surgeon in the region to successfully utilize the Abiomed Impella 5.5 cardiac pump during open-heart surgery. This latest generation of cardiac assist device helps the heart pump blood during and after cardiac surgery, allowing the heart to “rest” while it recovers natural pumping functions.

As part of our Structural Heart Program, Dr. Joe Walsh and Dr. Jeffrey Heslop are interventional cardiologists who are participating in several clinical trials and research initiatives. These include the Progress Trial, Complete Trial, Option Trial and assisting with the Summit Trial. Participating in clinical trials and research studies is a critical focus of our program and one that keeps our providers on the cutting edge of new techniques and procedures for our patients.