Comparison of Beating-Heart Technique Versus Aortic Cross-Clamping in Tricuspid Valve Surgery

Tricuspid valve surgery can be performed on a beating heart or on an arrested heart. We aimed to compare the outcomes of tricuspid valve surgery using these two different approaches.

Between January 2015 and February 2020, 204 patients who underwent tricuspid valve surgery along with concomitant cardiac surgical procedures were included in the study. Techniques of cross-clamping and beating-heart tricuspid surgery were applied to 103 and 101 patients, respectively. Concomitant valvular and/or coronary interventions were performed under cross clamping in both groups. Results from the preoperative period, immediate postoperative period, and six-month postoperative interval were compared between the groups.

There were no differences in demographic characteristics or preoperative grades of tricuspid valve regurgitation between the groups. Duration of mechanical ventilation, and stays in the intensive care unit and hospital were significantly shorter in patients operated on using the beating-heart technique. Additionally, re-exploration surgery and mortality rates were significantly lower in the beating-heart group. Postoperative six-month echocardiography findings related to tricuspid valve regurgitation, maximum and minimum gradients of the tricuspid valve, and pulmonary arterial pressure were also lower in the beating-heart group.

Beating-heart tricuspid valve surgery may be preferable to the cross-clamping technique to avoid clamp-induced ischemia, which can lead to worsened postoperative outcomes.