Reliability of Immersive Virtual Reality for Pre-Procedural Planning for TAVI: A CT-Based Validation

Background. Accurate anatomical assessment is essential for pre-procedural planning in structural heart disease. Advanced 3D imaging could offer improved visualization for more accurate reconstruction. We assessed the performance of a novel immersive 3D virtual reality (VEA) for the pre-procedural planning of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) candidates. Methods. Measurement of cardiac-gated contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) scans was performed with the novel VEA and established tools: 3Mensio and Horos. Results. 50 consecutive patients were included. Annular and LVOT measurements obtained with VEA were strongly correlated with those derived from standard CT analysis. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) confirmed excellent consistency for annular measurements (ICC = 0.93), while the concordance correlation coefficient indicated very good overall agreement (CCC = 0.83, 95% CI 0.73-0.90). Similarly, LVOT measurements obtained with VEA showed strong correlation with CT values, with good consistency (ICC = 0.90) and good overall agreement (CCC = 0.77, 95% CI 0.64-0.86). VEA-based planning improved prosthesis size selection accuracy, achieving higher concordance with implanted valves and a significant net reclassification gain over conventional CT. Conclusions. Given the increasing use of advanced 3D cardiac imaging technologies, understanding their diagnostic accuracy to guide pre-procedural planning of TAVI is paramount. In our study, VEA provided reliable assessment of aortic root anatomy for TAVI planning. This novel 3D software provides accurate, patient-specific reconstructions of the aortic root and surrounding structures that may optimize valve sizing, improve procedural safety and enhance procedural outcomes. This provides a rationale for future studies to assess the procedural benefit derived from a three-dimensional assessment of the aortic valve geometry.