Objectives: Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is an established therapeutic option
for patients with severe aortic stenosis and elevated risk for surgery. Transfemoral
(TF) access is the most commonly used route for TAVI implantation. Vascular injury
continues to be one of the most frequent complications of this procedure. One alternative
to open surgical repair is an interventional approach with a percutaneous transluminal
angioplasty (PTA) or stent implantation. In this study, we aim to evaluate the percutaneous
management of vascular injury after TF TAVI.
Methods: A total of 842 consecutive patients underwent TF TAVI at our institution from January
2015 to December 2017. Types of transcatheter heart valves (THV) used were: Symetis
Accurate, 29.6%, n = 249, BostonScientific Lotus 13.9%, n = 117, St. Jude Portico, 13.7%, n = 116, and Edwards SapienXT/3 42.8%, n = 360. All patients received computed tomography for evaluation of relevant anatomical
structures including access vessels. Arterial wall calcification and lumen diameters
were measured using 3mensio software. Arterial wall calcification was graded according
to a three-level scale (mild, moderate, and severe). A 30-day follow-up was available
for 95% of patients.
Results: The patient population (male gender 54.8% (n = 462), age 81.8 ± 6.3 years) was treated via right (90.1%, n = 758) or left (9.9%, n = 84) common femoral artery. In 66.6% (n = 561), the use of preclosure systems resulted in immediate adequate hemostasis,
whereas in the remaining 33.4% (n = 281), residual bleeding necessitated additional treatment. In 25.6% (n = 216), internal vessel blocking using standard PTA balloons with an inflation time
of 3 to 5 minutes. In 5.1% (n = 43), stent implantation for vascular repair was necessary. Most frequently (93%,
n = 40), a covered Advanta (Maquet Holding, Germany) stent was used. The remaining
three (7%) patients were treated with a Palmaz Genesis stent (Cordis, Switzerland).
Most frequent sizes used were 8 × 38 mm in 25.5% (n = 12) and 10 × 38 mm in 21.2% (n = 10). Mean number of stents used per patient was 1.1. In 2.6% (n = 22), surgical vascular repair became necessary. At 30-day follow-up, no patient
treated receiving vascular stents required repeat intervention or experienced clinical
adverse events.
Conclusion: Management of vascular injury intravascular balloon compression or stent implantation
yielded excellent acute results and has become our default approach. Analysis of the
mid-term fate of these patients is currently underway.