Aortic valve calcification and myocardial fibrosis determine outcome following transcatheter aortic valve replacement.

There is evidence to suggest that the subtype of aortic stenosis (AS), the degree of myocardial fibrosis (MF), and level of aortic valve calcification (AVC) are associated with adverse cardiac outcome in AS. Because little is known about their respective contribution, we sought to investigate their relative importance and interplay as well as their association with adverse cardiac events following transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). One hundred consecutive patients with severe AS and indication for TAVR were prospectively enrolled between January 2017 and October 2018. Patients underwent transthoracic echocardiography, multidetector computed tomography, and left ventricular endomyocardial biopsies at the time of TAVR. The final study cohort consisted of 92 patients with a completed study protocol, 39 (42.4%) of whom showed a normal ejection fraction (EF) high-gradient (NEFHG) AS, 13 (14.1%) a low EF high-gradient (LEFHG) AS, 25 (27.2%) a low EF low-gradient (LEFLG) AS, and 15 (16.3%) a paradoxical low-flow, low-gradient (PLFLG) AS. The high-gradient phenotypes (NEFHG and LEFHG) showed the largest amount of AVC (807 ± 421 and 813 ± 281 mm MF is associated with adverse CV outcome following TAVR, which is most prevalent in low EF situations. In the presence of large MF burden, patients with large AVC have better outcome following TAVR. Conversely, worse outcome in large MF and relatively little AVC may be explained by a relative prominence of an underlying cardiomyopathy. The better survival rates in large AVC patients following TAVR indicate TAVR induced relief of severe AS-associated pressure overload with subsequently improved outcome.

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© 2023 The Authors. ESC Heart Failure published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of European Society of Cardiology.