Related Experiment Video
Updated: Nov 29, 2025
Upper-extremity Approach for Secondary Access in Transfemoral Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation
Published on: August 8, 2025
Transcarotid versus transthoracic access for transcatheter aortic valve replacement: A propensity-matched analysis
Keith B Allen1, Adnan K Chhatriwalla1, John Saxon1
1Saint Luke's Hospital, Saint Luke's Mid America Heart Institute, Kansas City, Mo.
Objective:
Transcarotid access for transcatheter aortic valve replacement is emerging as an alternative to more traditional nonfemoral access options such as transapical or transaortic; however, comparative data are limited. The purpose of the study was to analyze outcomes after transcatheter aortic valve replacement using transcatheter compared with transthoracic (transapical/transaortic) access.
Methods:
The Society of Thoracic Surgeons/American College of Cardiology Transcatheter Valve Therapy Registry was queried for patients who underwent transcarotid, transapical, or transaortic transcatheter aortic valve replacement with the SAPIEN 3 (Edwards Lifesciences, Irvine, Calif) transcatheter heart valve between June 2015 and July 2019. Thirty-day unadjusted outcomes were evaluated, and propensity score matching and logistic regression were used to compare transcatheter access with transthoracic access.
Results:
In the propensity-matched analysis, 667 transcarotid transcatheter aortic valve replacement procedures were compared with 1334 transthoracic procedures. Transcarotid transcatheter aortic valve replacement was associated with lower mortality (4.2% vs 7.7%, P = .004), less new-onset atrial fibrillation (2.2% vs 12.1%, P < .0001), fewer readmissions at 30 days (9.8% vs 16.1%, P = .0006), shorter median length of stay (3.0 vs 6.0 days, P < .0001), shorter median intensive care unit stay (25 vs 47.2 hours, P < .0001), and greater 30-day Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire score improvement from baseline (25.1 vs 20.8, P = .007). Stroke (4.3% vs 3.7%, P = .44) and major vascular complications (1.4% vs 1.9%, P = .40) were similar.
Conclusions:
Transcatheter aortic valve replacement using transcarotid access is associated with lower 30-day mortality, less atrial fibrillation, shorter intensive care unit and overall length of stay, fewer readmissions, greater improvement in Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire scores, and no significant difference in stroke or major vascular complications compared with transthoracic access.
