Surgical aortic valve replacement outcomes in the transcatheter era

The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) on the characteristics and outcomes of patients undergoing surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) in a single high-volume Canadian center.

Between January 2003 and December 2013, 1593 patients underwent isolated SAVR at our institution. The study period was divided into 2 distinct cohorts of patients undergoing SAVR: before (n = 529) and after (n = 1064) the first TAVI procedure in May 2007. We compared the risk profiles and clinical outcomes of the 2 cohorts and assessed the multivariate predictors of in-hospital mortality.

The ratio of isolated SAVR to the total number of cardiac surgery cases per year rose significantly after the introduction of TAVI (7.2% vs 9.1%; P < .0001). There was significantly more diabetes, obesity, recent myocardial infarction, and use of a bioprosthesis among SAVR patients in the post-TAVI era (all P values < .05). In-hospital mortality decreased significantly among SAVR patients following the introduction of TAVI (3.6% vs 1.8%; P = .03). Independent risk factors for in-hospital mortality among the entire study population were SAVR in the pre-TAVI era, baseline creatinine, age, and prosthesis size ≤ 21 mm for the pre-TAVI group only.

The number of isolated SAVR cases increased following the introduction of TAVI. There was a significant reduction in operative mortality of SAVR in the post-TAVI era despite greater severity of several markers of risk. Patient referrals for TAVI should take into consideration the changing risk profiles and improved results of conventional surgery.