Awake transcatheter aortic valve replacement—an anesthesiologist’s perspective

Transcatheter aortic replacement has become the standard of care for patients with severe aortic valve stenosis. With advancement of technologies, this technique has become much safer and simpler. Both general anesthesia (GA) and monitored anesthesia care (MAC) have been provided for transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). MAC or awake transcatheter valve replacement was shown to carry similar clinical outcomes with significantly reduced length of stay. We reviewed the literature and presented our practical minimalist anesthesia approach to awake TAVR.