Abstract
Aims
A growing number of patients is undergoing transcatheter treatment of severe Aortic Stenosis. Changes in cardiac mechanics after removal of afterload in these patients are under-investigated. Myocardial Work (MW) is emerging as a useful non-invasive correlate of invasively measured myocardial performance and oxygen consumption. Aim of this study was to assess the usefulness of non-invasive MW indices in the clinical assessment of patients with severe aortic stenosis undergoing transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI).
Methods and results
Consecutive patients with severe aortic stenosis referred for TAVI in a single tertiary centre were included. Echocardiography recordings (GE-Healthcare) with systolic and diastolic non-invasive pressures, were obtained immediately before TAVI and after TAVI to measure myocardial work index (MWI), myocardial constructive work (MCW), myocardial wasted work (MWW), and myocardial work efficiency (MWE). Consecutive patients with severe AS (n = 73) undergoing TAVI and matched controls (n = 50) were included. Mean transaortic gradient, AV area, and peak transvalvular velocity were significantly improved (all P < 0.05). No changes in left ventricular ejection fraction nor in global longitudinal strain (GLS) were observed. GWI (P < 0.001) and GCW (P < 0.001) were significantly reduced after TAVI. On the contrary, we observed no significant change in GWW (P = 0.241) nor GWE (P = 0.854). Women had higher GWI (P = 0.007) and GCW (P = 0.014) compared to men, with a larger delta change of GCW. Patients with a low flow low gradient (LF-LG) AS had lower LVEF (P < 0.001), worse GLS (P < 0.001) and lower baseline GWI (P < 0.001), GCW (P < 0.001), and GWE (P = 0.003). The improvement in GWI and GCW observed after TAVI in the general study population were abolished among LF-LG patients.
Conclusions
The use of non-invasive myocardial work might be useful to further classify patients with AS and could be useful to predict non responders.
Getting Safely In and Out of a Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation Procedure
