The Congenital Tricuspid Valve Spectrum: From Ebstein to Dysplasia

From ECG to Imaging: Challenges in the Diagnosis of Adult Congenital Heart Diseases

Congenital heart diseases (CHD) are one of the most common birth defects and the main leading cause of death in children. Many patients with CHD are reaching adulthood due to the success of improved contemporary surgical procedures. Understanding the etiology of CHD remains important for patient clinical management. Both genetic and environmental factors are involved in the development and progression of CHD. Variations in many different genes and chromosomal anomalies can be associated with CHD, by expression of different mechanisms. Sporadic cases are the most frequently encountered in these patients. Atrial septal defect is a common congenital heart disease that refers to direct communication between atrial chambers, found isolated or associated with other syndromes. Imaging techniques, especially transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography (TOE) represent the key for diagnosis and management of ASD. The disease has a major incidence in adulthood, due to late symptomatology, but assessment and treatment are important to avoid time-related complications. Ebstein's anomaly is a rare congenital disease, with a dominant genetic participation, characterized by an abnormal displacement of the tricuspid valve and right ventricular myopathy, often requiring surgical intervention. Alongside echocardiography, cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging is the gold standard tool for the assessment of ventricular volumes. Early diagnosis and adequate treatment are mandatory to avoid possible complications of CHD, and thus, ECG, as well as imaging techniques, are important diagnostic tools. However, patients with CHD need a special healthcare team for the entire monitorization in various life stages.

Imaging and guiding intervention for tricuspid valve disorders using 3-dimensional transesophageal echocardiography in pediatric and congenital heart disease

In the pediatric and congenital heart disease (CHD) population, tricuspid valve (TV) disorders are complex due to the variable TV morphology, its sophisticated interaction with the right ventricle as well as associated congenital and acquired lesions. While surgery is the standard of care for TV dysfunction in this patient population, transcatheter treatment for bioprosthetic TV dysfunction has been performed successfully. Detailed and accurate anatomic assessment of the abnormal TV is essential in the preoperative/preprocedural planning. Three-dimensional transthoracic and 3D transesophageal echocardiography (3DTEE) provides added value to 2-dimensional imaging in the characterization of the TV to guide therapy and 3DTEE serves as an excellent tool for intraoperative assessment and procedural guidance of transcatheter treatment. Notwithstanding advances in imaging and therapy, the timing and indication for intervention for TV disorders in this population are not well defined. In this manuscript, we aim to review the available literature, provide our institutional experience with 3DTEE, and briefly discuss the perceived challenges and future directions in the assessment, surgical planning, and procedural guidance of (1) congenital TV malformations, (2) acquired TV dysfunction from transvenous pacing leads, or following cardiac surgeries, and (3) bioprosthetic TV dysfunction.

Tricuspid cleft or tetracuspid valve? Usefulness of three-dimensional echocardiogram in the assessment of isolated tricuspid regurgitation in pediatrics

Tricuspid regurgitation (TR) in children may be secondary to congenital anomalies of the tricuspid valve complex which is composed by annulus, leaflets, commissures, chordae tendineae, and papillary muscles. The most common congenital cause is Ebstein's anomaly; however, there are less frequent causes such as abnormal number of tricuspid leaflets, tricuspid cleft, leaflet prolapse, double orifice tricuspid valve, and congenital tricuspid valve dysplasia. Identifying the precise cause is important to plan an appropriate repair surgery. In this article, the case of a 4-year-old patient with a tetracuspid valve with significant tricuspid regurgitation is presented and the morphological analysis was made by two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) transthoracic echocardiography. The morphological differences between a tetracuspid valve and a cleft of the anterior leaflet tricuspid valve are exposed. 3D echocardiographic evaluation of the tricuspid valve allowed a better understanding of the tricuspid valve anatomy, which includes evaluation of the tricuspid annulus, leaflets, commissures, and subvalvular apparatus. Recognizing the accurate cause of isolated tricuspid regurgitation allows better planning of the surgical technique.

The concept of cone creation to treat isolated tricuspid valve dysplasia and the case of a double-orifice tricuspid valve

OBJECTIVES

Isolated tricuspid valve dysplasia is a rare disease characterized by a wide spectrum of possible anomalies. We describe the use of the Cone concept to treat a patient with a double-orifice tricuspid valve with massive regurgitation and severe deficit of coaptation.

METHODS

Three adult patients with congenital non-Ebstein tricuspid valve anomaly characterized by severe coaptation deficiency underwent tricuspid valve repair applying the Cone technique. In particular, we describe the case of a symptomatic 21-year-old woman with a double-orifice tricuspid valve, with massive regurgitation and severe right ventricular dilatation. The tricuspid valve was transformed from a double-orifice valve into a single-orifice valve. The most superior orifice was opened, and the tissue surrounding the orifice was used to extend the leaflet of the inferior orifice. A Cone was created, and a ring annuloplasty was used to stabilize the result.

RESULTS

The patient was discharged home after 7 days with trivial residual tricuspid regurgitation and no significant antegrade gradient. The final coaptation height was 2.8 cm. The cardiothoracic ratio decreased from 0.77 to 0.59 after 2 months, and symptoms promptly improved.

CONCLUSIONS

Over the past 2 years, we have applied the Cone creation concept to patients with a severely dysplastic tricuspid valve with excellent early results. One patient had a double-orifice tricuspid valve, and a Cone repair concept was adopted anyway. One orifice was sacrificed, and surrounding tissue was used to augment the leaflets of the other orifice. A Cone was created to improve central coaptation with a good initial result.

Novel Echocardiographic Metrics Predict Tricuspid Insufficiency in Pediatric Ebstein Anomaly

Objectives. The tricuspid anterior leaflet is considered important in most repair techniques for Ebstein anomaly (EA). We aim to assess the anterior leaflet morphology using novel metrics and investigate the association of the morphology with recurrent moderately severe or greater tricuspid regurgitation (TR). Methods. Seventy-four paediatric patients with EA undergoing cone reconstruction (CR) between 2010 and 2021 were included. Anterior leaflet mobility (ALM) and anterior leaflet length (ALL) were remeasured on preoperative 2D echocardiography. The prediction accuracies of ALM and ALL-I (ALL indexed to body surface area) for recurrent TR were evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses. Results. The median age of patients was 3.3 years (interquartile range, 1.9–7.1 years). Both ALM and ALL-I correlated with the Carpentier type and GOSH score. Nine patients (12.2%) developed recurrent TR during the one-year follow-up. By univariable logistic regression analyses, ALM (odds ratio [OR], 0.89; 95% CI [confidence interval], 0.82–0.96; $p$  = 0.003) and ALL-I (OR, 1.39; 95% CI, 1.08–1.78; $p$  = 0.011) were risk factors for recurrent TR. ROC curve analyses showed that ALM (AUC = 0.81) and ALL-I (AUC = 0.77) had better predictive performance for recurrent TR compared with the GOSH score (AUC = 0.68), the Carpentier type (AUC = 0.67), and preoperative TR severity (AUC = 0.58), and the combinations of ALM and ALL-I (AUC = 0.87) improved the predictive performance compared with ALM or ALL-I alone. Conclusions. ALM and ALL-I can help optimize evaluation in the anterior leaflet morphology and predict recurrent TR after CR in pediatric EA.

Interventions for Congenital Atrioventricular Valve Dysfunction: JACC Focus Seminar

Innovation and creativity have led to tremendous advancements in the care and management of patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) that have resulted in considerably increased survival. Catheter-based interventions have contributed significantly to these advancements. However, catheter-based interventions for congenital lesions of the atrioventricular (AV) valves have been limited in scope and effectiveness mainly because of patient size and anatomical challenges. Thus, surgical repair and replacement for congenital AV valve lesions have remained the preferred therapy. However, the ongoing transcatheter heart valve revolution has led to techniques and technologies that are changing the landscape, particularly for adult CHD patients. Many devices for AV valve repair and replacement are being studied in adult patients without CHD, and translation of select practices to CHD patients has begun, with many more to come. Transcatheter AV valve interventions represent exciting opportunities for the growing numbers of adult CHD patients.