Methods and apparatuses for deploying minimally-invasive heart valves

A method for deploying a prosthetic aortic heart valve in a patient in need thereof, the method comprising:

• percutaneously advancing through a patient's vasculature a distal end portion of an elongate delivery system, a prosthetic aortic heart valve in a contracted configuration disposed on the distal end portion, the prosthetic valve comprising a radially contractible and expandable tubular stent and a plurality of leaflets secured to the stent, the stent coupled to a deployment mechanism disposed on the distal end portion, the deployment mechanism comprising a longitudinally extending shaft, the shaft rotatable about a longitudinal axis thereof;
• positioning the prosthetic valve in an annulus of a heart valve;
• and
• rotating the shaft of the deployment mechanism in a first direction, thereby expanding the prosthetic valve to a final expanded configuration within the annulus of the heart valve.