The first four cases of successful NeoChord procedure in Chinese mainland

BACKGROUND:Transapical off-pump NeoChord procedure is a novel minimally invasive surgical repair of degenerative mitral regurgitation(MR).Here,we report the first four cases of NeoChord procedure in patients with mitral valve prolapse in Chinese mainland.METHODS:Four patients,aged 86,84,80 and 60 years,with severe MR due to posterior middle scallop prolapse(P2),underwent transapical off-pump artifi cial chordae implantation on April 9 and 10,2019.The procedure was performed by left mini-thoracotomy under general anaesthesia and guided by 2D and 3D dimensional transoesophageal echocardiography(TEE).RESULTS:Mitral valve repair via NeoChord procedure was successfully performed with implantation of 3 artifi cial chordae in the fi rst patient and 3,2,and 3 artifi cial chordae in the following patients,respectively.Intraoperative TEE and pre-discharge transthoracic echocardiography(TTE)showed only mild to moderate MR of these four patients and no postoperative complications were noted.There were no changes of TTE fi nding between one-month follow-up and pre-discharge.CONCLUSION:The successful NeoChord procedures in four Chinese indicate that the valve repair using the NeoChord system for Chinese population is feasible.

The first two cases of transcatheter mitral valve repair with ARTO system in Asia

BACKGROUND:MAVERIC(Mitral Valve Repair Clinical Trial)validates the safety and effi cacy of the ARTO system.We here report the fi rst two successful cases of utilizing the ARTO system in patients with symptomatic heart failure(HF)with functional mitral regurgitation(FMR)in Asia.METHODS:Two patients,aged 70 and 63,had severe HF with FMR.Transesophageal echocardiography confirmed that the left ventricular ejection fractions were less than 50%with severe mitral regurgitation(MR)in both patients.Optimizing drug treatment could not mitigate their symptoms.Therefore,we used the ARTO system to repair the mitral valve for these patients on March 5 and 6,2019,respectively.RESULTS:Mitral valve repairs using the ARTO system were successfully performed under general anaesthesia for these two patients.MR was decreased immediately after the procedures in both patients.The 30-day and 3-month transthoracic echocardiography(TTE)revealed a moderate to severe MR in both patients,and the New York Heart Association(NYHA)scales were also partially improved.CONCLUSION:The first two cases in Asia indicate that the ARTO system is feasible for patients with heart failure with FMR,and the patient selection appears to be crucial.

Evaluation of the safety and efficacy of transcatheter aortic valve implantation in patients with a severe stenotic bicuspid aortic valve in a Chinese population

Objective： The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of transcatheter aortic valve implantation （TAVI） in patients with a severe stenotic bicuspid aortic valve （BAV） in a Chinese population. While several groups have reported the feasibility, efficacy, and safety of TAVI for patients with a BAV, worldwide experience of the technique is still limited, especially in China. Methods： From March 2013 to November 2014, high surgical risk or inoperable patients with symptomatic severe aortic stenosis （AS） who had undergone TAVI at our institution were selected for inclusion in our study. Results were compared between a BAV group and a tricuspid aortic valve （TAV） group. Results： Forty patients were included in this study, 15 （37.5%） of whom were identified as having a BAV. In the BAV group, the aortic valve area was smaller （（0.47±0.13） vs. （0.59±0.14） cm2）, the ascending aortic diameter was larger （（40.4±4.4） vs. （36.4±4.3） mm）, and the concomitant aortic regurgitation was lower. No significant differences were found between the groups in the other baseline characteristics. No differences were observed either in the choice of access or valve size. The procedural success achieved in this study was 100%. There were no differences between groups in device success （86.7% vs. 88.0%）, 30-d mortality （6.7% vs. 8.0%）, or 30-d combined end point （13.3% vs. 12.0%）. The incidences of new pacemaker implantation, paravalvular regurgitation and other complications, recovery of left ventricle ejection fraction and heart function were similar in both groups. Conclusions： Patients with a severely stenotic BAV can be treated with TAVI, and their condition after treatment should be similar to that of people with a TAV.

Relation of uric acid levels to aortic root dilatation in hypertensive patients with and without metabolic syndrome

Objective:Uric acid(UA) is considered to be a powerful predictor of cardiovascular risk and hyperuricemia might be involved in the metabolic syndrome(MS).This study aims to investigate the relation between UA levels and aortic root dilatation.Methods:A total of 348 hypertensive patients [age(67.5±9.8) years] with or without MS were included in the study.The aortic root diameters at the aortic annulus,the sinuses of Valsalva,the sinotubular junction,and the proximal part of the ascending aorta were measured using a two-dimensional(2D) echocardiography.Serum UA levels were also measured for all patients.Results:A high UA level is independently associated with aortic root diameters at the sinuses of Valsalva(P=0.001) and the proximal ascending aorta(P<0.0001) in the hypertensive patients without MS.In contrast,aortic root diameters were not significantly related to UA levels in the hypertensive patients with MS.Furthermore,increased UA levels were associated with an increased risk for aortic root dilatation in the patients without MS(sex-adjusted hazard ratio 1.75,95% confidence intervals(CI) 1.27-2.41),but not in those with MS.Conclusions:This study demonstrated an independent relationship between the aortic root dimensions and increased levels of serum UA in the hypertensive patients without MS.Further understanding of the mechanisms underlying these associations may allow a clearer interpretation of the potential value of specific urate-lowering treatment on cardiovascular disease.