2020 ACC/AHA Guideline for the Management of Patients With Valvular Heart Disease: Executive Summary: A Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Joint Committee on Clinical Practice Guidelines

TLDR

Updated valvular heart disease guidelines incorporate new evidence and offer expanded diagnostic and treatment options, with full details available in the complete guideline. The executive summary provides clinicians with recommendations for diagnosing and managing valvular heart disease, accompanied by supporting documentation. The guideline was developed through a comprehensive literature search of English‑language studies from 2010 to 2020 across major databases, and the summary presents recommendations on diagnostic work‑up, timing and choice of surgical or catheter interventions, and medical therapy.

Abstract

Aim: This executive summary of the valvular heart disease guideline provides recommendations for clinicians to diagnose and manage valvular heart disease as well as supporting documentation to encourage their use. Methods: A comprehensive literature search was conducted from January 1, 2010, to March 1, 2020, encompassing studies, reviews, and other evidence conducted on human subjects that were published in English from PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Reports, and other selected database relevant to this guideline. Structure: Many recommendations from the earlier valvular heart disease guidelines have been updated with new evidence and provides newer options for diagnosis and treatment of valvular heart disease. This summary includes only the recommendations from the full guideline which focus on diagnostic work-up, the timing and choice of surgical and catheter interventions, and recommendations for medical therapy. The reader is referred to the full guideline for graphical flow charts, text, and tables with additional details about the rationale for and implementation of each recommendation, and the evidence tables detailing the data considered in developing these guidelines.