Following Edwards Lifesciences CEO statement on the chilly outlook for transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR);

James Spencer, Senior Data Scientist at GlobalData Healthcare, offers his view:

“For the past couple of years, TAVR has been enjoying an explosive growth. It was one of, if not, the fastest-growing cardiovascular markets, with consistent double-digit percentage growth of around 15%. However, with the aftereffects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the healthcare industry as well as the maturity of the TAVR market, the halcyon days of growth may be coming to an end.

“CEO Michael Mussallem reportedly said that ‘the US TAVR procedure volumes continued to be impacted by regional staffing constraints, which were somewhat worse than we anticipated.’ Edwards Lifesciences has now adjusted its growth forecast down to only mid-single digits, a far cry from the 10-18% in 2021. This is in line with GlobalData’s own forecasts. The TAVR market has seen a growth of up to 40% in the last seven years as it exploded onto the scene with expanded indications and improving clinician knowledge of when and how to use the procedure. However, as the market matures, the scope for growth is ever diminishing.

“This is compounded by the macroeconomic factors at play in the US as well. The COVID-19 pandemic had a horrible effect on the healthcare industry. Short staffing and overwork due to a never-before-seen workload led to high levels of burnout and staff departure from the medical field. This in turn only exacerbated the issues, causing further staff to leave. Hospitals are struggling to find enough staff, and this is causing procedures to be delayed or even canceled. It will be a long time until the healthcare industry recovers from this blow, and until then, procedure volumes and, ultimately, patients will have to bear the consequences.”