Influence of mitral valve repair versus replacement on the development of late functional tricuspid regurgitation

Impact of Diastolic Interventricular Septal Flattening on Clinical Outcome in Patients With Severe Tricuspid Regurgitation

Background

Little is known about the impact of diastolic interventricular septal flattening on the clinical outcome in patients with severe tricuspid regurgitation. This study sought to evaluate the association of diastolic interventricular septal flattening with clinical outcome in patients with severe tricuspid regurgitation.

Methods and Results

We retrospectively studied 407 patients who underwent 2‐dimensional transthoracic echocardiography and were diagnosed with severe tricuspid regurgitation between January 2014 and December 2015. Cardiovascular events were defined as cardiovascular death or admission for heart failure. The magnitude of interventricular septal flattening was calculated by the eccentricity index (EI) of the left ventricle, and hemodynamic parameters were obtained from transthoracic echocardiography. During follow‐up (median, 200 days; interquartile range, 35–1059), 117 of the patients experienced cardiovascular events. By multivariate analysis including potential covariates, EI at end‐diastole and left ventricular ejection fraction were independent predictors of cardiovascular events (hazard ratio, 5.33 [1.63–17.41]; hazard ratio, 0.98 [0.97–0.99], respectively). An EI of 1.2 at end‐diastole was the optimal cutoff value for identifying poor hemodynamic status defined as cardiac index ≤2.2 L/min per m² and right atrial pressure 15 mm Hg, both on transthoracic echocardiography. Patients with D‐shaped left ventricle defined as EI ≥1.2 at end‐diastole showed worse outcomes than those without (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.80 [1.18–2.74]).

Conclusions

Increasing EI at end‐diastole was strongly associated with worse outcomes in patients with severe tricuspid regurgitation. Furthermore, the presence of D‐shaped left ventricle defined as EI ≥1.2 at end‐diastole provides prognostic value for cardiovascular events.

Mitral valve replacement in mitral stenosis; the problem of small left ventricle

Background

Mitral valve stenosis in adults especially due to rheumatic heart disease may be associated with a smaller than normal left ventricular cavity. Mitral valve replacement in such cases may lead to hemodynamic instability either during weaning from cardiopulmonary bypass or in the early postoperative period manifested by the need for inotropic support and even mortality due to low cardiac output syndrome.

Patients and methods

184 patients with predominately severe stenotic mitral valves who underwent elective isolated mitral valve replacement in the period between January 2012 and January 2018 at our hospital were included in this study. Patients were divided into 2 matched groups; (small LV group) consisting of 86 cases and (normal or dilated LV group) consisting of 98 cases.

Results

There were no statistically significant differences in operative details among both groups apart from the need for inotropic support and intra-aortic balloon pump due to low cardiac output which were statistically significantly higher in (small LV group) than (normal or dilated LV group) with a p-values of 0.01 and 0.03 respectively. Within the ICU stay only the incidence of occurrence of heart failure was significantly higher in (small LV group) with a p-value of 0.008. No statistically significant difference could be elicited in the in-hospital mortality between both groups (p-value = 0.1).

Conclusion

Patients with mitral valve stenosis and small left ventricular cavity are in a higher need for inotropic and even mechanical support after mitral valve replacement as well as at a higher risk for the development of heart failure before hospital discharge than patients with mitral stenosis and normal-sized left ventricular cavity.

Comparison of Mitral Valve Repair versus Replacement for the Progression of Functional Tricuspid Regurgitation

Background: Function tricuspid regurgitation (TR) is frequently observed in patients undergoing mitral valve surgery. It is unclear that mitral valve repair (MVr) or mitral valve replacement (MVR) has influence on the likelihood of late TR progression.

Methods: This study included 193 patients with degenerative mitral valve disease who underwent either MVr or MVR. Detailed preoperative materials, follow-up information, and echocardiographic data were collected and statistically analyzed.

Results: At 6 and 12 months postoperatively, MVR patients were more likely to have New York Heart Association (NYHA) class III or IV symptoms than MVr patients (6 mo: 15.2% vs 5.0%, 12 mo: 13.0% vs 4.0%, both P <0.05). At 24 months, the incidence of Grade 1+ TR was significantly higher in MVR patients than MVr patients (25.0% vs 12.9%, P <0.05). In univariate analysis, age (odds ratio [OR] = 1.036, P = 0.036), MVR (OR = 2.256, P = 0.033), and preoperative TR area (TRA; OR = 1.541, P = 0.047) were significant predictors for TR progression. In multivariate logistics analysis, only MVR was independently risk factor (P = 0.006). Subsequently, patients were divided into tricuspid valve repair (TVr) group and untreated group. In both subgroups, MVR patients were associated with significantly larger TRA (P <0.01).

Conclusion: MVR was an independent risk factor for TR progression, whether tricuspid valve was treated or not.

Severity of tricuspid regurgitation is associated with long-term mortality

OBJECTIVES

To determine the association between intraoperative/presurgical grade of tricuspid regurgitation (TR) and mortality, and to determine whether surgical correction of TR correlated with an increased chance of survival compared with patients with uncorrected TR.

METHODS

The grade of TR assessed by intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) before surgical intervention was reviewed for 23,685 cardiac surgery patients between 1990 and 2014. Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to determine association between grade of TR and the primary endpoint of all-cause mortality. Association between tricuspid valve (TV) surgery and survival was determined with Cox proportional hazard regression models after matching for grade of TR.

RESULTS

Kaplan-Meier survival curves demonstrated a relationship between all grades of TR. Multivariable analysis of the entire cohort demonstrated significantly increased mortality for moderate (hazard ratio [HR], 1.24; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.1-1.4; P < .0001) and severe TR (HR, 2.02; 95% CI, 1.57-2.6; P < .0001). Mild TR displayed a trend for mortality (HR, 1.07; 95% CI, 0.99-1.16; P = .075). After matching for grade of TR and additional confounders, patients who underwent TV surgery had a statistically significant increased likelihood of survival (HR, 0.74; 95% CI, 0.61-0.91; P = .004).

CONCLUSIONS

Our study of more than 20,000 patients demonstrates that grade of TR is associated with increased risk of mortality after cardiac surgery. In addition, all patients who underwent TV surgery had a statistically significantly increased likelihood of survival compared with those with the same degree of TR who did not undergo TV surgery.

Mechanism and Implications of the Tricuspid Regurgitation

The tricuspid valve was virtually ignored for a long time in the past. However, significant tricuspid regurgitation (TR) often accompanies left-side heart valve pathology and does not always reverse with its correction. If left untreated, TR can progress and result in progressive right ventricular failure. Current guideline recommendations still hold minor differences. Nevertheless, there is a consensus to operate on patients with severe TR undergoing left-sided valve surgery (class I) or those with mild to moderate TR with a dilated annulus (≥40 or ≥21 mm 2 , Class IIa). However, in case of the primary TR, surgical options is limited by a relatively high risk of mortality and morbidity. For these patients, new percutaneous approaches are becoming available but no long-term data are still available. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of the epidemiological and pathophysiological aspects of TR, and the current and future directions of therapy.

Tricuspid Annular Size and Regurgitation Progression After Surgical Repair for Degenerative Mitral Regurgitation

The late worsening of nonsevere tricuspid regurgitation (TR) after mitral valve surgery is a relevant clinical problem that can lead to high-risk reoperation. Although tricuspid annulus (TA) dilatation has been proposed for prophylactic annuloplasty to prevent TR worsening, prospective data in degenerative mitral regurgitation (MR) are lacking. The aim of this prospective cohort study was to evaluate TA dimension to predict TR progression after valve repair for degenerative MR. Clinical and echocardiographic evaluation of 706 patients with degenerative MR and no significant TR was obtained preoperatively and at follow-up after isolated mitral valve repair. Together with standard cardiac chamber and valve analysis, 3-dimensional (3D) transesophageal echocardiography was performed to evaluate TA, including the anteroposterior and septolateral diameters. After a mean follow-up of 24 ± 15 months (range 6 to 60), 2 patients died while 14 developed severe MR. Compared with preoperative values, TR decreased (≤1 degree) in 227 patients, was unchanged in 437, and increased (≥1 degree) in 39 patients, with the development of significant TR (3 to 4 degree) in 3 patients. Receiver-operating characteristic curve analysis did not identify significant TA values predicting postoperative TR worsening. On multivariate regression analysis, recurrent MR and pulmonary hypertension at follow-up emerged as significant positive predictors of TR progression. Newly developed significant TR is a rare event after successful repair of degenerative MR. Although more accurate than conventional 2D measurement, 3D analysis of TA does not predict early to midterm subsequent TR progression.

Impact and evolution of right ventricular dysfunction after successful MitraClip implantation in patients with functional mitral regurgitation

BACKGROUND

Right ventricular dysfunction (RVdysf) is a predictor of poor outcome in patients with heart failure and valvular disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate the evolution and the impact of RVdysf in patients with moderate-severe functional mitral regurgitation (FMR) successfully treated with MitraClip.

METHODS AND RESULTS

From October 2008 to July 2014, 60 consecutive high surgical risk FMR patients were evaluated and stratified into two groups: RVdysf group (TAPSE < 16 mm and/or S'TDI < 10 cm/s, 21 patients) and No-RVdysf group (38 patients). The overall mean age of patients was 73 ± 8 (83% male). Ischemic FMR etiology was present in 67%. Mean LVEF was 30 ± 10%. Overall mean time follow-up was 565 ± 310 days. The only significant difference between the two groups was a greater prevalence of stroke, ICD and use of aldosterone antagonist in RVdysf group. Acute procedural success was achieved in 90% of patients. At 6-month echo-matched analysis significant RV function improvement was observed in patients with baseline RVdysf (TAPSE 15 ± 3.0 vs. 19 ± 4.5, p = 0.007; S'TDI 7 ± 1.2 vs. 11 ± 2.8, p < 0.0001; baseline vs. 6-month, respectively). The mean improvement in the 6-min walking test was significant in both groups (120 and 143 m, RVdysf and No-RVdysf groups, respectively). At Kaplan-Meier analysis, the presence of RVdysf did not affect the outcome in terms of freedom from composite efficacy endpoint.

CONCLUSIONS

This study shows that successful MitraClip implantation in patients with FMR and concomitant right ventricular dysfunction yields significant improvement of RV function at mid-term follow-up. Further data on larger population will be required to confirm our observations.

Cardiac surgery 2014 reviewed

For the year 2014, more than 17,000 published references can be found in Pubmed when entering the search term "cardiac surgery". The last year has been characterized by a vivid discussion in the fields where classic cardiac surgery and modern interventional techniques overlap. Specifically, there have been important contributions in the field of coronary revascularization with either percutaneous coronary intervention or bypass surgery as well as in the fields of interventional valve therapy. Here, the US core valve trial with the first demonstration of a survival advantage at 1 year with transcatheter valves compared to surgical aortic valve replacement or the 5-year outcome of the SYNTAX trial with significant advantages for bypass surgery has been the landmark. However, in addition to these most visible publications, there have been several highly relevant and interesting contributions. This review article will summarize the most pertinent publications in the fields of coronary revascularization, surgical treatment of valve disease, heart failure (i.e., transplantation and ventricular assist devices) and aortic surgery. This condensed summary will provide the reader with "solid ground" for up-to-date decision-making in cardiac surgery.

Indications for Surgery for Tricuspid Regurgitation

Despite the fact that tricuspid regurgitation (TR) can result in significant symptoms, patients are rarely referred for isolated surgical repair, or replacement, and most surgeries are performed in the context of other planned cardiac surgery. In this article, we review the different causes of TR, the natural history of untreated severe TR, indications and timing for isolated TR surgery, indications for TR surgery performed at the time of left-sided valve surgery, and surgical approaches for correction of TR.