Cardiac conduction block is one of the most common perioperative complications of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), a proportion of which will resolve spontaneously over time, but its incidence has not decreased with the iteration of instruments. It is associated with poor prognosis of patients. The prevention and management strategies of cardiac conduction block after TAVR are still being explored. This paper expounds the mechanism, influence, incidence, predictors, management of cardiac conduction block and indications, timing of permanent pacemaker implantation to provide a reference for the prevention and management of cardiac conduction block after TAVR in clinical practice.
ObjectiveTo investigate the operation of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), the use of TAVR instruments and the current situation of TAVR-related nursing in our country, to reveal the characteristics of TAVR in various hospitals in our country, and to provide reference data for improving perioperative nursing and industry development of TAVR. MethodsA questionnaire survey was conducted among the head nurses of the cardiac catheterization laboratories of 51 hospitals in China that carried out TAVR operations, with a total of 5 items and 23 questions. The current situation of TAVR operation methods, intraoperative instruments and nursing care in China were analyzed. ResultsThe number of hospitals in China which started conducting TAVR and the beginning year were: 2 in 2010, 1 in 2012, 1 in 2013, 1 in 2015, 11 in 2016, 13 in 2017, 15 in 2018 and 7 in 2019; the number of transfemoral TAVR in 2019: 32 (62.75%) hospitals conducted on less than 20 patients, 7 (13.73%) hospitals 20-<50 patients, 6 (11.76%) hospitals 50-100 patients and 6 (11.76%) hospitals more than 100 patients; TAVR strategies adopted by most hospitals were: general anesthesia (90.20%), the use of vascular sealers (80.39%), backing by cardiac surgeon (74.51%) and using homemade prosthetic valves. Conclusion At present, the number of TAVR carried out in Chinese hospitals is still far behind that of developed countries in Europe and the United States. Our country has adopted the form of multidisciplinary cardiac team cooperation and formed a TAVR nursing model with Chinese characteristics.
Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) is the best treatment for severe aortic stenosis with high surgical risk, and low body weight significantly increased the risk of surgery and postoperative all-cause mortality. A case of elderly female diagnosed with severe aortic valve stenosis and extremely low body weight was presented in this article. Additionally, horizocardia and low located coronary orifice were also found in this patient, which markedly increased the risk and complexity of the TAVR procedure. During the operation, circulatory collapse occurred, and prosthetic valve was quickly released under emergency cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The operation was successful and the patient’s vital signs recovered soon. The follow-up showed that the patient was in good condition.
Patients with bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) are characterized by asymmetric anatomy, severe calcification and combined aortic dilatation. Compared with tricuspid aortic valve stenosis patients, patients with BAV stenosis confront with greater surgical risks in transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), including paravalvular leak, aortic valve rupture, coronary artery obstruction, atrioventricular block and so on. However, with the advent of new generation of prosthetic valves and optimization of surgical strategies, several studies have shown that TAVR is safe and effective in the treatment of BAV stenosis. Therefore, we aim to provide an overview of the use of TAVR in patients with BAV stenosis.
An elderly female patient, with systemic multiple organ dysfunction, suffered from severe aortic valve stenosis, was to undergo transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). She was intolerance of the computed tomography examination before surgery. Bedside echocardiography was employed to evaluate the patient’s aortic valve stenosis, valve anatomy and type, the condition of aortic root, the distance from coronary to aortic root, and lower-extremity vascular access. Finally, the emergent TAVR was successfully performed under general anesthesia, and the aortic valve trans-prosthetic gradient met a remarkable decrease after surgery.
“Valve-in-valve” technique is an effective method to treat the bioprosthesis structural valve degeneration. In this paper, an 82-year-old male patient with severe aortic valve regurgitation had underwent surgical aortic valve replacement. He had a bioprosthesis structural valve degeneration which caused severe aortic stenosis more than 3 years after surgery. His symptoms of chest distress and short breath were aggravated progressively, and not relieved by conventional treatment. As the deterioration in his unstabled circulation system, an emergency transcatheter aortic valve replacement was conducted for him. The operation was finally successful, the symptoms were relived significantly after operation, and then the follow-up indicated that he had a good recovery.
Due to the lack of calcification of the aortic valve, it is difficult to provide effective support for the fixation of artificial valve in aortic stenosis characterized by leaflet thickening. There is a risk of postoperative perivalvular leakage and secondary valve implantation, which is widely regarded as a relative contraindication for transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). But aortic valvuloplasty and self-expanding transcatheter aortic valve has showed its safety and efficacy. This paper reports a patient with bicuspid aortic valve characterized by leaflet thickening treated with TAVR. After the operation, the patient’s symptom of exertional dyspnea was significantly improved, New York Heart Association class increased to Ⅱ, no perivalvular leakage was found, and the mean transaortic pressure gradient and the maximum aortic valve velocity decreased significantly.
Coronary artery obstruction is a rare but fatal complication of transcatheter aortic valve replacement. Although there is no accepted criteria to fully evaluate the occurrence of coronary artery obstruction, studies have revealed many important risk factors, and some preventive measures have also been found to reduce their occurrence. At present, transcatheter aortic valve replacement is in a stage of rapid development in China, but clinical medical workers’ knowledge of coronary artery obstruction as a complication still needs to be improved. This article discusses the incidence, risk factors, predictive assessment, prevention, treatment and prognosis of coronary artery obstruction complicated by transcatheter aortic valve replacement, so as to increase clinical medical workers’ understanding of this complication.
Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) is a reasonable alternative for patients with severe aortic stenosis who are at a medium or high risk from surgery, and it’s gradually extended to low-risk groups. The safety of surgery is confirmed with the advancement of technology and the improvement of surgical instruments, but surgical complications are still common. Cardiovascular collapse is the leading cause of death during the surgery and not rare. This article reported a case of cardiovascular collapse during TAVR who were successfully rescued, while literature review on the causes and treatment of cardiovascular collapse were made.
Objective To assess early clinical safety and efficacy of transfemoral transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TF-TAVR) for pure aortic regurgitation (PAR). Methods The clinical data of PAR patients who underwent TAVR in Wuhan Asia Heart Hospital and Wuhan Asia General Hospital from January 2018 to October 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were divided into a TF-TAVR group and a transapical transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TA-TAVR) group. The clinical data of the patients were analyzed. Results A total of 54 patients were enrolled, including 34 males and 20 females with an average age of 74.43±6.87 years. The preoperative N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide level was lower [808.50 (143.50, 2 937.00) pg/mL vs. 2 245.00 (486.30, 7 177.50) pg/mL, P=0.015], and the left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (56.00±6.92 mm vs. 63.07±10.23 mm, P=0.005) and sinus junction diameter (32.47±4.41 mm vs. 37.65±8.08 mm, P=0.007) were smaller in the TF-TAVR group. There was no death in the two groups during the hospitalization. Only 1 new death within postoperative 1 month in the TF-TAVR group (cerebral hemorrhage). A total of 2 new deaths in the TF-TAVR group (1 patient of sudden cardiac death and 1 of multiple organ failure), and there was no death in the TA-TAVR group within postoperative 3 months. There was 1 new death in the TA-TAVR group (details unknown), and there was no death in the TF-TAVR group within postoperative 6 months. There was no statistical difference between the two groups in the all-cause mortality and the cumulative survival rate during the follow-up period (P>0.05). The incidence of high atrioventricular block was 36.0% in the TF-TAVR group and 10.3% in the TA-TAVR group (P=0.024). There were no significant differences between the two groups in the perivalvular leakage (≥moderate), valve in valve, a second valve implantation, valve migration, cerebrovascular events, major vascular complications, complete left bundle branch block, new permanent pacemaker implantation or transferring to surgery (P>0.05). However, the incidence rates of complete left bundle branch block and new permanent pacemaker implantation were higher in the TF-TAVR group, accounting for 56.0% and 40.0%, respectively. Conclusion TF-TAVR is a safe and feasible treatment for PAR patients, which is comparable to TA-TAVR in the early postoperative safety and efficacy.