Logan Vincent, M.D., etched her name in the history books earlier this year when she became the first female interventional cardiologist to perform a transcatheter tricuspid valve replacement through the internal jugular vein.
The cutting-edge heart valve replacement was performed at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center, a leader in heart care across Oregon and the U.S., and serves as an alternative to open-heart surgery and procedures where cardiologists repair or replace the valve by going through the groin.
“What patients like about the neck procedure, is that they can be up and walking fairly quickly
after the anesthesia has worn off,” Dr. Vincent said of the procedure that is currently in the early stages of a clinical trial. “When we go through the groin, the patient is on bed rest for a couple of hours, and then we’re more cautious for a couple of weeks afterward to make sure there are no bleeding complications. That type of complication is possible through the neck, but it’s more visible and easier to appreciate if it needs to be addressed.”
The purpose of the procedure is to resolve severe cases of tricuspid regurgitation, where blood flows the wrong way through the heart because the tricuspid valve isn’t closing properly. Dr. Vincent said the condition is fairly common. Symptoms include fatigue, shortness of breath and swelling when the condition worsens.
While cardiologists primarily treat the condition with medication, valve repair or replacement comes into the conversation when symptoms persist.
Providence St. Vincent has been participating in this trial since 2024 as one of the few early sites to offer this procedure — fewer than 50 of these procedures have been done worldwide.
Dr. Vincent anticipates that randomized pivotal trial will commence in 2026, thus expanding patient access to this therapy. Providence St. Vincent has other patients that would likely be candidates for this procedure once the trial is expanded, Dr. Vincent said.
At Providence St. Vincent, this procedure is currently performed by two interventional cardiologists, one leading and one supporting, due to the equipment involved. Dr. Vincent has supported her partner, Brandon Jones, M.D. in five of these surgeries before taking the lead with this historic case.
It’s a significant career accomplishment for Dr. Vincent, who completed her residency and cardiac fellowships at the University of Washington before coming to work at Providence St. Vincent.
“When I was at University of Washington, I had a fantastic mentor in cardiology,” Dr. Vincent said. “She made cardiology seem fascinating. The heart and cardiac physiology made sense to me; I found that I really liked diving deep into the plumbing and hemodynamics of the heart, thinking about how a change in a valve or blood flow could have downstream effects on the way the heart works.
“As I progressed further into my cardiology training, I realized that I loved doing hands-on procedural work, and interventional valve work blended procedures with my interest in hemodynamics.”
Women cardiologists like Dr. Vincent make up fewer than 10% of interventional cardiologists, and fewer than 5% who will repair or replace heart valves. Dr. Vincent said she’s proud to be the first woman across the world to support and then perform this procedure, but she’s humble about having the opportunity.
“You get to this point and you appreciate the decades of work, reputation-building and successful outcomes that two decades of cardiologists and cardiac surgeons have put in to bring these opportunities to Providence St. Vincent,” she said. “That allows me to stand on the foundation they built and help provide these novel therapies.”
More meaningful to her is being able to treat this condition which impacts more women than men.
“So many heart conditions affect more men than women, so it’s a unique combination of patient population and cardiologist for both to be women,” she said.
