A prosthetic heart valve for adults and children, made from the patient’s own tissue, a replacement heart valve that lasts a lifetime

Each year 400,000 people are born with heart valve defects worldwide. Moreover, in the western world, 1 in 8 healthy adults will develop a heart valve problem during their lifetime. Current artificial heart valves made from animal or human donor tissue carry a high risk of tissue rejection, degradation and calcification that limit their lifespan to about 10 years, forcing patients to undergo risky cardiac re-surgery. For children, no dedicated valve product exists, thus, paediatric patients can endure 4-5 surgeries between 0-18 years of age as their bodies outgrow each replacement heart valve. At GrOwnValve we have developed a paradigm shift in heart valve technology: the first autologous valve, grown from the patient’s own tissue, crafted using medical imaging and a 3D printing technique. Our valve lasts a lifetime, eliminating tissue rejection and surgical risks associated with repeated surgery (bleeding, infection and death).