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Oxford University Press, European Heart Journal, Supplement_2(41), 2020

DOI: 10.1093/ehjci/ehaa946.2198

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Long-term follow-up after percutaneous pulmonary valve implantation: sustained clinical benefit with evidence of persistent biventricular reverse remodeling and improved global performance

This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

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Abstract

Abstract Background Patients with native or post-surgical right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) dysfunction often require several re-interventions. Percutaneous pulmonary valve implantation (PPVI) has recently been proposed as an attractive alternative to surgery, but there is still lack of data on long-term results. Aim To determine the long-term outcome after PPVI and to investigate whether clinical benefit and cardiac performance improvement is achieved after the procedure. Methods and results Seventy-eight patients (mean age 31.75±11.7) undergoing PPVI between April 2007 and July 2017 at Royal Brompton Hospital were retrospectively included in the study. The median follow-up was 6.1 years (2.1–11.2). Overall survival was 90.8%±4.1 at 6 years and 85%±5.9 at 11 years with freedom from valve failure (defined as either severe stenosis or regurgitation) of 87.6%±5 at 6 years of follow-up. Annual reintervention rate was 3.2% (95% CI 1.6–5.5). Infective endocarditis was a major concern with annual incidence rate of 1.6% (95% CI 0.5–3.4) and 50% of adverse outcome. Male sex (HR 3.2, 95% CI 1.3–7.9, p=0.013), age at procedure>50 years (HR 4.7, 95% CI 1.5–15.1, p=0.01) and residual mean gradient>25 mmHg at immediate postprocedural echo (HR 4.6, 95% CI 1.6–13.5%, p=0.006) were independently associated to the composite endpoint (including death, re-intervention, valve failure and arrhythmia). At latest follow-up, significant NYHA class (Pre Vs 6.1yrs Post p<0.0001) and cardiopulmonary test results improvement (peakVO2 p=0.01) and arrhythmic burden reduction (p=0.002) were found. Both cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) and serial echocardiograms showed biventricular reverse remodeling (Pre Vs 1.3yrs Post CMR: RVEDVi p=0.0002, RVESVi p=0.0012, LVEDVi p=0.028). Furthermore, speckle tracking assessments demonstrated significant improvement of RV free wall GLS (Pre Vs 6.4yrs Post p=0.03) and LV GLS (p=0.01) at long-term. Moreover, concomitant improvement of RV relaxation properties was suggested by echo evidence of right atrial (RA) reverse remodeling (Pre Vs 6.4yrs Post RA area p=0.0001), increased RA strain (p=0.0005) and reduction of the patients with restrictive RV physiology (p<0.0001). Conclusion PPVI is a reliable alternative to surgery with long-lasting favourable clinical effects associated with significant and persistent structural biventricular reverse remodeling and global systolic and diastolic functional improvement. Valve failure and infective endocarditis remain major complications during follow-up. Older and male patients and those with residual transvalvular gradients immediately post procedure are at higher risk of adverse clinical events, thus suggesting that re-intervention should be anticipated and that complete relief of RVOT obstruction should be pursued. Kaplan-Meier curves for survival free from VF Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: None