Do all patients with asymptomatic severe aortic stenosis need treatment?

INTRODUCTION: Although guidelines recommend a watchful waiting strategy for patients with asymptomatic severe aortic stenosis, there have been considerable advancements in surgical and anesthetic techniques along with the success of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (AVR) as a viable alternative to surgical AVR. Inevitably, these developments have raised questions as to whether or not there is still merit in waiting for symptoms to ensue before treatment may be offered to these patients.

AREA COVERED: The principal purpose of this paper is to review the data supporting earlier intervention in patients with asymptomatic severe aortic stenosis, and to project the implications these and other ongoing trials will have on indications for AVR in asymptomatic patients in the future.

EXPERT OPINION: The threshold for intervention in certain subgroups of asymptomatic patients with severe AS has already been lowered. The next frontier will inevitably be determining whether all patients with severe AS should undergo AVR irrespective of their symptomatic status.