Imagine this: you’re 80, you’ve just had a fancy heart valve replaced via a minimally invasive TAVR procedure, and your doctors say, “We’re going to try giving you a gout drug to stop your heart from acting up.” Sounds wild, right?

Well, that’s basically what a group of researchers in Switzerland did in a recent study — and the results were a mix of “whoa, that might work” and “uh-oh, not like that.”

Here’s the deal:

The Heart Valve Problem

As more people live longer, doctors are doing more TAVR procedures (aka Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement). It’s a slick way to replace a faulty heart valve without cracking open your chest. But post-surgery, a lot of patients — up to 1 in 4 — end up with electrical issues in the heart, like new-onset atrial fibrillation (AFib) or conduction problems that require a pacemaker.

Blame inflammation. The heart doesn’t like being poked, and inflammation after surgery can short-circuit its rhythm.

Enter: Colchicine

Colchicine is a centuries-old drug mainly used to treat gout and inflammation. So researchers thought: “What if we gave it to TAVR patients to cool down the inflammation and reduce those heart rhythm issues?”

And so, the Co-STAR trial was born.

The Experiment

  • 120 patients, average age 80
  • Half got colchicine, half got a placebo
  • The goal: see who developed post-surgery heart rhythm problems or needed a pacemaker within 30 days

The results?

  • Only 10% of the colchicine group hit that heart rhythm/pacemaker endpoint
  • Compared to 25% in the placebo group
  • Also, fewer had hidden blood clots forming on their new heart valves (aka “subclinical leaflet thrombosis”)

Score one for Team Colchicine, right?

Not so fast.

The Bad Twist

Midway through the trial, researchers hit the emergency stop button. Why?

Strokes.
Five patients in the colchicine group had strokes.
Zero in the placebo group.
That was enough to pull the plug early, just 120 patients in (out of a planned 200).

Yikes.

To be fair, some of the strokes happened after the drug had been stopped. And more patients in the colchicine group had a prior stroke history. But still — not a great look for a heart trial.

What This Means

Colchicine might help lower your risk of post-TAVR rhythm issues and silent clots on your heart valve. That’s a big deal, especially as TAVR becomes more common among younger, healthier patients.

But those stroke numbers? Total dealbreaker until further notice.

Researchers say we need bigger, better trials — maybe even with different anti-inflammatory drugs — before anyone starts handing out colchicine post-TAVR.

Breakdown

  • What happened? Researchers gave a gout drug (colchicine) to TAVR patients to prevent arrhythmias and valve clots.
  • Did it work? Yes — fewer rhythm problems and blood clots.
  • So what’s the problem? More strokes in the colchicine group.
  • Now what? The trial got shut down early. More research needed.

Ryffel C, Lanz J, Guntli N, Samim D, Fürholz M, Stortecky S, Tomii D, Heg D, Boscolo Berto M, Peters AA, Reineke D, Reichlin T, Gräni C, Windecker S, Pilgrim T. Colchicine in patients with aortic stenosis undergoing transcatheter aortic valve replacement: a double-blind randomized trial. Nat Commun. 2025 Jul 15;16(1):6501. doi: 10.1038/s41467-025-61916-6. PMID: 40659682; PMCID: PMC12259991.