Background: Aortic rupture of the device landing zone is a rare complication of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) and it is associated with significant mortality.
Methods: This study reports on the experience of a single-center in a case series of more than 1,000 implants. We explored patient and procedural characteristics aiming at identifying variables that increase the risk for aortic root rupture.
Results: Among a total of 1,000 TAVI procedures, six patients (0.6 %) had a rupture of the device landing zone. Five of these patients received the balloon-expandable Edwards SAPIEN valve (5/813; 0.62 %) of which four had a supraannular and one a subannular rupture. One patient received the self-expanding Medtronic CoreValve (1/199; 0.5 %; p = n.s. vs. SAPIEN) and had an annular rupture. Factors that were associated with aortic rupture were: (1) the relative size of the valve compared with the aortic annulus and its geometric form; (2) the need for post-dilation of the new valve because of paravalvular leakage; and (3) the location and severity of calcification. We determined, to avoid aortic rupture, caution may be necessary in the presence of the following conditions: (1) flat sinuses of Valsalva and severe calcifications of either the body or the free edge of the aortic cusps (supraannular rupture); (2) an ellipsoid annulus and bulky calcifications on either the base of the cusps or the rim of the annulus (annular rupture); and (3) a narrow left-ventricular outflow tract (LVOT) and bulky calcification of the LVOT (subannular rupture). After considering these precautions, we observed no case of aortic root rupture in the following 600 cases.
Conclusion: The data indicate that to reduce the frequency of aortic rupture, a careful pre-procedural planning appears essential to avoid this serious and potentially deleterious complication.