Echocardiographic guidance of transcatheter closure of atrial septal defects: is intracardiac echocardiography better than transesophageal echocardiography?

Intracardiac Echocardiographic Guidance for Structural Heart Procedures: Current Utility as Compared to Transesophageal Echocardiography

Over the past decade, engineering advances in intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) have improved the ability of an imager or interventionalist to guide not only interatrial septal procedures but now commonly left atrial appendage, tricuspid, and mitral procedures. When transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) is not possible because of anatomic limitations, ICE has proved a useful tool to safely complete structural interventions. ICE will play a growing, key role in structural interventions where anatomic factors strongly favor an intracardiac perspective or augment TEE when imaging is suboptimal.

Intracardiac vs. transesophageal echocardiography for guiding transcatheter closure of interatrial communications: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

Transcatheter closure of atrial septal defect (ASD) and patent foramen ovale (PFO) is an established practice, and it requires monitoring and guidance. Both transoesophageal echocardiography (TEE) and intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) can be used as guidance tools. However, the use of ICE and TEE in structural heart disease is controversial and the advantages and disadvantages of both for ASD and PFO closure need to be investigated. We did a systematic review and meta-analysis to compare the efficacy and safety of TEE and ICE for guiding transcatheter closure of ASD and PFO.

Methods

A systematic search of Embase, PubMed, Cochrane library, Web of Science was conducted from inception to May 2022. The outcomes of this study included average time for both fluoroscopy and the procedure, complete closure, length of stay at hospital and adverse events. This study was performed using mean difference (MD), relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence interval (CI).

Results

The meta-analysis was conducted with a total of 11 studies, involving 4,748 patients were included in meta-analysis, including 2,386 patients in the ICE group and 2,362 patients in the TEE group. The results of the meta-analysis showed that compared with TEE, ICE was shorter in time both fluoroscopy [MD: -3.72 (95%CI: -4.09 to -3.34) minutes, P < 0.00001] and the procedure [MD: -6.43 (95%CI: -7.65 to -5.21) minutes, P < 0.00001], shorter length of stay at hospital [MD = -0.95 (95% CI = -1.21 to -0.69) days, P < 0.00001], lower incidence of adverse events (RR = 0.72, 95%CI: 0.62 to 0.84, P < 0.0001), and the arrhythmia (RR = 0.50, 95% CI = 0.27 to 0.94, P = 0.03) and vascular complications (RR = 0.52, 95%CI = 0.29 to 0.92, P = 0.02) in ICE group were lower than those in TEE group. No significant difference in complete closure was found between ICE and TEE (RR = 1.00, 95% CI = 0.98 to 1.03, P = 0.74).

Conclusion

Under the premise of ensuring successful rate of complete closure, ICE can shorten time between fluoroscopy and procedure and length of stay at hospital, and there was no increase in adverse events. However, more high-quality studies are needed to confirm the benefits of using ICE in ASD and PFO closure.

Intracardiac echocardiography Chinese expert consensus

In recent years, percutaneous catheter interventions have continuously evolved, becoming an essential strategy for interventional diagnosis and treatment of many structural heart diseases and arrhythmias. Along with the increasing complexity of cardiac interventions comes ever more complex demands for intraoperative imaging. Intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) is well-suited for these requirements with real-time imaging, real-time monitoring for intraoperative complications, and a well-tolerated procedure. As a result, ICE is increasingly used many types of cardiac interventions. Given the lack of relevant guidelines at home and abroad and to promote and standardize the clinical applications of ICE, the members of this panel extensively evaluated relevant research findings, and they developed this consensus document after discussions and correlation with front-line clinical work experience, aiming to provide guidance for clinicians and to further improve interventional cardiovascular diagnosis and treatment procedures.

Echocardiographic imaging options in ovine research subjects

OBJECTIVES

To determine the feasibility of acquiring quality transesophageal (TEE), epicardial (EE), and intracardiac (ICE) echocardiographic images in ovine subjects and to discuss the merits of each technique with a focus on ICE image acquisition.

ANIMALS

Eleven male castrated Dorset adult sheep.

METHODS

Transesophageal echocardiography was performed under general anesthesia. Epicardial echocardiography was performed as part of an open chest (thoracotomy or sternotomy) experiment. Subjects were recovered with permanent jugular vein indwelling catheter and ICE from this approach was described. Feasibility of each technique was qualitatively assessed based on subjective image quality from three images for each image plane in each sheep.

RESULTS

Transesophageal echocardiography was technically challenging and did not provide adequate image quality for consistent interpretation. Epicardial echocardiography and ICE had more favorable results with ICE demonstrating unique benefits for post-operative serial monitoring.

CONCLUSIONS

Epicardial echocardiography and ICE were effective imaging techniques. Epicardial echocardiography required the least specialized training but was considered to have limited feasibility due to its requirement for an open chest procedure. Even with the necessity for permanent indwelling jugular cannulation, ICE was the least invasive of the three imaging techniques and potentially the most practical approach for chronic studies by minimizing post-operative stress. Transesophageal echocardiography was not a feasible technique in this study.

Intracardiac echocardiography: evolving use in interventional cardiology

Intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) uses a catheter-based steerable ultrasound probe that is passed into the right heart chambers to image intracardiac structures. The transducer can be variably positioned for optimal imaging: in the inferior vena cava to visualize the abdominal aorta; in the right atrium for the interatrial septum, aortic, mitral, and tricuspid valves, and pulmonary veins; or in the right ventricle for the left ventricular function, outflow tract, or pulmonary artery. Intracardiac echocardiography is primarily used for imaging during an invasive cardiac procedure using conscious sedation, when transthoracic image quality would likely be inadequate, and transesophageal imaging would require general anesthesia. Intracardiac echocardiography is generally well tolerated and provides adequate images and sufficient information for the procedure performed. In the cardiac catheterization laboratory, ICE is routinely used for patent foramen ovale, atrial septal defect, and ventricular septal defect closures, allowing adequate percutaneous placement of septal occluders. It is now being considered in the current era of transcatheter aortic valve implantation necessitating improved imaging approaches for accurate placement. It is also routinely used for trans-septal punctures during mitral valvuloplasty and, more recently, with the advent of left atrial appendage closure devices. This article provides a comprehensive review of the current technology for ICE and its growing applications in the realm of interventional cardiology.

Intracardiac echocardiography: clinical utility and application

Intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) broadens the spectrum of available echocardiographic techniques and provides the operator direct visualization of cardiac structures in real time. ICE has clear advantages over fluoroscopy, transthoracic echocardiography, and transesophageal echocardiography as the imaging modality of choice in the cardiac catheterization and electrophysiological laboratories. With the development of steerable phased array catheters with low frequency and Doppler qualities, there is marked improvement in visualization of left-sided structures from the right heart. Appropriate utilization of ICE is likely to maximize safety and efficacy of complex interventional procedures and may improve patient outcomes. Future advances in ICE imaging will further improve the ease of device guidance and, in combination with new imaging modalities, could dramatically improve other applications of echocardiography which may result in improved patient outcomes. This review describes the technical evolution of ICE, the use of ICE in guiding percutaneous interventional procedures and possible future applications of ICE in the ever-growing field of interventional cardiology.

Sizing of atrial septal defects by intracardiac echocardiography for device closures

BACKGROUND

Transcatheter closure of a secundum atrial septal defect (ASD) has become an effective method for surgical treatment. In this study, we evaluated the feasibility and accuracy of intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) for sizing ASDs compared with conventional methods.

METHODS

Between January 2004 and December 2006, 270 patients underwent transcatheter closure of secundum ASD by using septal occluders. For 142 patients, the procedure was guided by transesophageal echocardiography (TEE), and for 128 patients by ICE. We compared the maximal diameters of the ASDs obtained during angiocardiography, transthoracic echocardiography (TTE), ICE, and TEE with balloon-stretched sizes ascertained by using a sizing plate.

RESULTS

ASD diameters measured with the sizing plate were significantly correlated with those measured with ICE (r = 0.963), TEE (r = 0.912), angiography (r = 0.88), and TTE (r = 0.85). The predicted stretched diameter of the ASDs, i.e. (nonstretched diameter measured with ICE x 1.07) + 3.23 mm, agreed well with that measured by using a sizing plate (Ri = 0.974).

CONCLUSION

ASD diameters measured with ICE correlated with sizing-plate measurements better than those determined with TEE, angiography or TTE.

Intracardiac echocardiography to guide closure of atrial septal defects in children less than 15 kilograms

BACKGROUND

Intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) is increasingly replacing transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) as the primary imaging technique to guide device closure of atrial septal defects (ASD). Owing to the length of the procedure, the use of TEE requires general anesthesia. Investigators have reported the usefulness of ICE in adults and children. However, little is known about the use of ICE in children whose weight is <15 kg. Therefore, this study examines the use of ICE guided secundum ASD closure in children <15 kg.

METHODS

Nineteen patients with a median age of 3.1 years (range 1.8-4.8), and median weight of 13.2 kg (range 8.0-14.4) underwent transcatheter occlusion (Amplatzer occluder) of a secundum ASD using ICE guidance. ICE was performed using an Acunav catheter. The ICE catheter (10 F shaft) was introduced into an 11 F sheath in a contralateral femoral vein. Diagnostic as well as periprocedure imaging was obtained.

RESULTS

Sixteen patients had single, and three had multiple defects. Median defect size as measured by ICE was 16 mm (range 2.5-25). The median balloon stretched diameter (obtained in eight patients) was 18 mm (range 10-21); the median size of the defect for these eight patients was 15 mm (range of 8-20). Both techniques for measuring the defect correlated well with r = 0.94. The ASD occluder size ranged from 7 to 26 mm with a median of 18 mm. The procedure was successful in 16 patients who had a device implanted and no residual shunt. ASD occlusion was not attempted in two patients due to deficient rims and in one patient, the attempt failed due to left atrial disk prolapse through the ASD. Four patients experienced transient complications during the catheter procedure, including supra ventricular tachycardia, sinus bradycardia, and two with complete heart block (resolving with device removal); all had subsequent successful device placement. No complications were attributed to the use of ICE and specifically, no vascular injury was noted.

CONCLUSIONS

Comparable to results with larger patients, ICE provides adequate imaging (preprocedure diagnosis and periprocedure guidance) during device occlusion of secundum ASDs with no significant complications. Thus, ICE can successfully be used in the closure of ASD in smaller patients (<15 kg) and eliminate the need for endotracheal intubation.