| CPC A61F 2/2427 (2013.01) [A61F 2/2409 (2013.01); A61F 2/2412 (2013.01); A61F 2/2418 (2013.01); A61F 2/2433 (2013.01); A61F 2/2436 (2013.01); A61F 2/2445 (2013.01); A61B 17/0467 (2013.01); A61B 2017/32004 (2013.01); A61F 2220/0016 (2013.01); A61F 2230/0054 (2013.01); A61F 2250/006 (2013.01); A61F 2310/00023 (2013.01); A61M 2025/0004 (2013.01); A61M 25/10 (2013.01); A61M 25/104 (2013.01)] | 13 Claims |

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1. A method for treating a deficient native mitral valve, the method comprising:
advancing the distal end portion of a delivery catheter into a heart through a blood vessel of a patient until the distant end portion reaches a selected implantation site, wherein the delivery catheter contains a loop delivery catheter containing a support band stretched into a linear form, wherein the support band comprises a shape-memory material;
steering the distal end portion of the loop delivery catheter such that it curves partially around the native leaflets of the native mitral valve; and
ejecting the support band from the distal end portion of the loop delivery catheter by pushing the support band using a pusher shaft such that the support band transitions from the linear form to a curved shape extending around native leaflets of the native mitral valve such that the support band is disposed in a plane substantially parallel to a plane of an annulus of the native mitral valve and perpendicular to a direction of the flow of blood through the native mitral valve;
positioning an expandable prosthetic heart valve within an interior of the native mitral valve while the prosthetic heart valve is in a compressed shape; and
expanding the prosthetic heart valve, thereby causing an exterior surface of the prosthetic heart valve to urge the native leaflets of the native mitral valve against an interior surface of the support band and to frictionally secure the prosthetic heart valve to the native leaflets of the native mitral valve.
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