This treatment can also be performed robotically, although this still involves open-heart surgery; incisions are made in the chest. The MitraClip method, however, is performed entirely via angioplasty. It's a procedure done through the groin, requiring no chest incisions. The standard treatment method is mitral valve repair, performed through open-heart surgery. MitraClip is currently a somewhat experimental method. MitraClip is the name of the device; a small, clamp-like instrument. The mitral valve consists of anterior and posterior leaflets. In the angioplasty method, a catheter is inserted through the femoral vein, passing through the great vessels in the abdomen to reach the heart.