Kingston, Ontario, has become only the second site in Canada to offer a minimally invasive heart procedure that fixes a leaky tricuspid valve without cracking open the chest. On June 12, 2026, a team at Kingston Health Sciences Centre (KHSC) completed its first transcatheter tricuspid valve repair using the TriClip G5 device, bringing this advanced option to patients across southeastern Ontario who are too frail for traditional surgery.
The procedure was done in KHSC’s hybrid operating room, a space that combines high-tech imaging with surgical tools. Interventional cardiologist Dr. Wael Abuzeid and cardiac surgeon Dr. Carolyn Teng guided a small clip through a vein in the patient’s leg up to the heart, where it pinched the leaky valve shut. Because the heart never had to be stopped, most patients can go home the next day.
Only about one in 20 people with severe tricuspid valve regurgitation gets surgical help traditionally, because open-heart surgery carries high risks. The TriClip system, made by Abbott, was approved by the U.S. FDA on April 2, 2024, and is designed specifically for this tricky valve. During the Kingston case, the team also used four-dimensional intracardiac echocardiography – real-time 4D ultrasound from inside the heart – for the first time, letting doctors see the valve from any angle as they worked.
The Ontario Ministry of Health recently signed off on funding for the program. KHSC expects to do about 10 TriClip procedures in the first year, with plans to grow from there. This builds on the hospital’s structural heart track record: since 2022, its mitral clip program has fixed more than 100 leaking mitral valves, and its TAVI program routinely replaces aortic valves without surgery.
As the cardiac referral hub for roughly 650,000 people in the southeast corner of the province, KHSC’s new capability means residents with this serious condition won’t have to travel to Toronto or Ottawa for care. “This brings specialized heart treatment closer to home,” said a hospital spokesperson, noting the first patient is recovering well.
