Hybrid procedures: adverse events and procedural characteristics--results of a multi-institutional registry

Procedural cooperation between cardiac surgeon and interventional cardiologist to facilitate interventions such as device delivery or angioplasty (hybrid procedure) has become increasingly common in the management of patients with congenital heart disease.

Data were prospectively collected using a multicenter registry (C3PO). Between February 2007 and December 2008, seven institutions submitted data regarding 7019 cardiac catheterization procedures. Procedural data and adverse events (AEs) of 128 hybrid procedures were evaluated.

There was significant variability in the number of hybrid procedures per center, ranging from one to 89 with a median of eight. A total of 60% of interventional (vs. strictly diagnostic) hybrid procedures were performed by one center. The median weight was 3.7 kg (0.7-86 kg). Single-ventricle circulation was present in 60% of the procedures. Hybrid procedures included: patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) stent placement (n = 55), vascular rehabilitation (n = 25), ventricular septal defect (VSD) device closure (n = 7), valvotomy (n = 3), and diagnostic hybrid procedures (n = 38). Sixteen AEs occurred in 15/128 (12%) procedures. These included minor or trivial AEs (n = 9), moderate AEs (n = 5), major AEs (n = 1), and catastrophic AEs (n = 1). The type of AE documented included arrhythmias (n = 6), hypoxia or hypotension (n = 3), vessel or cardiac trauma (n = 2), and other events (n = 5). Of documented AEs, 9/16 (56%) were classified as not preventable, 6/16 (38%) as possibly preventable, and 1/16 (6%) as preventable. The incidence of AE related to PDA stent placement with surgical exposure (5/50, 10%) was significantly lower when compared with PDA stent placement performed percutaneously (4/5, 80%, P= .002).

Hybrid procedures appear to have a low incidence of associated major AEs. PDA stent placement performed as a palliation of hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) or complex single/two ventricle patients may have a lower incidence of AEs if performed using a direct approach with surgical exposure rather than a percutaneous approach. Accurate definitions of these innovative procedures are required to facilitate prospective data collection.