FAQ: American Heart Association's Heart Valve Initiative for Timely Diagnosis and Treatment
TL;DR
The American Heart Association's new Heart Valve Initiative provides healthcare systems with certification programs and data tools to gain competitive advantage in early diagnosis and treatment outcomes.
The Heart Valve Initiative integrates hospital certification, professional education, patient engagement tools, and data registry systems to improve adherence to evidence-based care guidelines.
This initiative aims to save lives and improve health outcomes for millions by ensuring timely diagnosis and appropriate treatment of heart valve disease worldwide.
One in 40 Americans have heart valve disease, and the American Heart Association's new initiative uses innovative tools to detect it earlier and save lives.
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The Heart Valve Initiative is a nationwide program launched by the American Heart Association to improve patient outcomes and healthcare quality for heart valve disease through science and education. Its purpose is to help health systems identify patients earlier, treat them faster, and deliver care aligned with evidence-based guidelines.
This initiative is crucial because heart valve disease affects over 28 million people worldwide, contributes to more than 60,000 deaths annually in the U.S., and many people are unaware of symptoms or delay treatment. The condition's impact is growing and deadly, requiring coordinated efforts to save lives.
The American Heart Association is leading the initiative, with Edwards Lifesciences serving as the founding sponsor. Dr. Mariell Jessup, chief science and medical officer of the American Heart Association, and Todd J. Brinton, chief scientific officer at Edwards Lifesciences, are key leaders involved.
The initiative will integrate hospital certification programs, healthcare professional education, and patient engagement tools to drive improvement across the full continuum of care. It will harmonize efforts in patient education, professional education, systems of care, and quality improvement.
Target: Aortic Stenosis™ is an existing program that uses a data registry to enhance the patient experience from symptom onset to diagnosis, follow-through, timely treatment, and disease management. Edwards Lifesciences is also the founding sponsor of this program, which focuses on one of the most common and serious heart valve diseases.
One in 40 people in the U.S. have heart valve disease, and the risk increases with age, especially for those over 65. The condition affects millions worldwide and contributes significantly to annual mortality rates.
The initiative encourages healthcare professionals to listen closely to patients, diagnose swiftly, and treat proactively. It aims to ensure patients have a system of care supporting their needs from diagnosis to treatment without unnecessary delays.
The initiative was announced in November 2025 and will be implemented over the next five years, focusing on improving adherence to guideline-based care and transforming how heart valve disease is diagnosed and treated.
This is a nationwide initiative in the United States, designed to improve healthcare systems and clinical outcomes across the country through coordinated efforts in patient education, professional education, and quality improvement programs.
Curated from NewMediaWire
