Our objective was to describe the long-term effects of endoscopic mitral valve (MV) repair on outcome in patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) and atrial functional mitral regurgitation (AFMR). In patients with HFpEF, even mild AFMR has been associated with poor outcome. The study population consisted of consecutive patients with HFpEF (left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) ≥ 50%, H2FPEF score ≥ 5) and AFMR, who underwent isolated, minimally invasive endoscopic MV repair (MVRepair group) (n = 131) or remained on standard of care (StanCare group) (n = 139). Patients with coronary artery disease or organic mitral regurgitation (MR) were excluded. Patients were matched using inverse probability of treatment weighting. Endpoints were all-cause mortality and a composite of all-cause mortality and HFpEF readmissions. The median follow-up was 5.03 years (interquartile range (IQR) 2.6–7.9 years). In the MVRepair group, the perioperative, 30-day, 1-year, and 5-year mortality were 0, 1%, 1%, and 12%, respectively. Additionally, 13 (10%) patients were readmitted for worsening HFpEF, while 2 (1%) individuals underwent redo MV surgery for recurrent MR. MVRepair compared with StanCare showed 21–29% (Standard Error (SE) 6–8%) and 19–26% (SE 6–8%) absolute risk reduction of all-cause mortality and HFpEF readmissions, respectively (all p < 0.05). MVRepair emerged as the strongest independent predictor of all-cause mortality (Hazard Ratio (HR) 0.16, 95% (Confidence Interval (CI) 0.07–0.34, p < 0.001) and HFpEF readmissions (HR 0.21, 95% CI 0.09–0.51, p < 0.001). At 5-year follow-up, in the MVRepair group, a total of 88% were alive and 80% were alive without readmission for HFpEF. We can conclude that endoscopic MV repair is associated with low perioperative mortality as well as high long-term efficacy, and appears to improve clinical outcome in patients with AFMR and HFpEF.
Role of functional mitral regurgitation in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction: an unrecognized protagonist?: reply
