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@#Conventional transcatheter aortic valve replacement is normally recommended with transthoracic echocardiography, and contrast agent mediated fluoroscopy under anesthesia to guide a better implantation of the transcatheter valve. However, iodine-containing contrast agent possibly damages the patient’s kidney, and even induces the acute kidney injury. We reported a 75-year-old patient diagnosed with severe aortic valve stenosis, moderate regurgitation, and chronic renal failure. We performed the aortic valve replacement under the guidance of fluoroscopy and transesophageal ultrasound without contrast agent. Seven days after surgery, the patient recovered well and discharged with alleviated aortic stenosis and fixed transcatheter aortic valve.
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Objective:To analyze the echocardiographic features of operation-related aorto-cardiac fistula(ACF) after surgery or transcatheter procedure, to explore the value of echocardiography on diagnosis of operation-related ACF, and summarize the key points of its diagnosis.Methods:Eight patients with operation-related ACF who were admitted to Fuwai Hospital were collected from July 2002 to December 2020. Echocardiographic features of the 8 patients with operation-related ACF were reviewed and analyzed. The diagnosis methodology was summarized.Results:Of the 8 patients with operation-related ACF, 3 had aortic right atrial fistula and 5 had aortic right ventricular fistula. The fistula was single, which can be located but not limited to the aortic sinus. The median size of the fistula was 4 mm (range: 3-5 mm). There was no aneurysmal dilation of the aortic sinus where the fistula was located. The fractured end of the fistula did not thin, and the fistula had a regular shape. Six of the 8 patients undertook cardiac catheterization and occlusion. One patient received surgical repairment. One patient was treated conservatively.Conclusions:Echocardiography can help diagnose operation-related ACF and provide valuable information for further clinical diagnosis and treatment. Sonographers should avoid missed diagnosis and pay attention to distinguishing from other causes of aortic-cardiac shunt disease.
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Objective To explore the value of echocardiography in patients with aortic stenosis who underwent transapical aortic valve implantation (TAAVI).Methods Fifteen high-risk patients with severe aortic stenosis were chosen in the present study,all of which received TAAVI in Fuwai Hospital Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences from June 2014 to March 2015.The left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (LVEDD),left atrial diameter (LAD),left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF),effective orifice area (EOA),mean aortic pressure gradient (MPG),as well as artificial valve function of patients were measured at different time points (before operation,discharge,1 month and 3-6 months after operation) by echocardiography.The data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA analysis with SPSS software,and multiple comparisons were done using LSD student t test.Results The data from preoperative echocardiography indicated severe aortic stenosis in the 15 patients,with the average level of EOA as (0.55± 0.28) cm2 and MPG as (58.93± 14.96) mmHg (1 mmHg=0.133 kPa).Moderate paravalvular aortic regurgitation was observed in one patients,who was then received a second implantation.There was no significant difference between LVEDD,LAD,and LVEF when the patients were at discharge,1 month and 3-6 months after operation.The prosthetic valves were stable and conformed by echocardiography,while paravalvular leak regurgitation (1-2 mm) was observed in 7 patients.One patient died of other reasons.Compared with preoperative data,the EOA increased while MPG decreased when the patients were at discharge,1 month and 3-6 month after operation (t=6.619,7.357,6.401,all P ＜ 0.001;t=9.523,9.687,5.932,all P ＜ 0.001).Conclusion With careful patient screening and selection,TAAVI can be an effective treatment for high-risk severe aortic stenosis patients,in which echocardiography plays an important role during the surgery and follow up.
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Objective: To explore the application value and safety of low-dose dobutamine stress echocardiogram (LDDSE) in patients of low-flow/low-gradient aortic stenosis combining left ventricular dysfunction with transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). Methods: A total of 5 eligible consecutive patients with contradiction of routine surgical valve replacement and going to receive TAVR in our hospital from 2013-10 to 2016-07 were enrolled. The mean aortic valvegradient, maximum flow velocity, each stroke volume and ejection fraction were recorded before and during LDDSE examination. The patients having confirmed diagnosis of true severe aortic stenosis with left ventricular contractile reserve received TAVR, for those without left ventricular contractile reserve received drug therapy or TAVR conditionally. The changes of cardiac function and NT-proBNP level were observed after TAVR. Results: All 5 patients showed positive finding in LDDSE; the mean aortic valve gradient ≥40mmHg and stroke volume≥20% implied that the patients had true severe aortic stenosis with left ventricular contractile reserve. No adverse reaction occurred during and after LDDSE. TAVR was performed in 4 patients and 1 was waiting for TAVR or balloon dilatation since temporary lacking of valve. The post-operative cardiac function was improved in all patients and NT-proBNP level was declined continuously. Conclusion: LDDSE examination could be considered in patients of aortic stenosis combining left ventricular dysfunction, low-flow and low-gradient to clarify ventricular contractile reserve and the severity of aortic stenosis. If the patients with ventricular contractile reserve, TAVR was recommended which was the effective treatment for relevant patients.
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Objective: To explore the cardiac function and outcomes in patients of aortic stenosis (AS) after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) within 6 months in order to provide the guidance for clinical treatment. Methods: A total of 49 consecutive severe AS patients with surgical contradiction or STS high risk score and received successful TAVR in our hospital from 2013-12 to 2015-12 were studied. Echocardiography and blood levels of NT-proBNP were examined at pre- and 1 month, 6 months after TAVR. Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), aortic valve mean gradient (MG), peak gradient (PG) and peak velocity (PV) were recorded. Based on pre-operative LVEF, the patients were divided into 2 groups: Cardiac dysfunction group, LVEF<50%,n=15 (30.6%) and Normal cardiac function group, LVEF≥50%, n=34 (69.4%). Post-operative cardiac function and blood levels of NT-proBNP were compared between 2 groups. Results: In all 49 patients, the following parameters were significantly improved within 7 days after TAVR: LVEF (56.0±14.6) % vs (52.5±13.8)%, MG (11±5) mmHg vs (58±18) mmHg, PG (21.7±9.5) mmHg vs (93.0±28.6) mmHg, PV (2.3±0.5) m/s vs (4.8±0.7) m/s, blood NT-proBNP level [1831 (1098-3363)] pg/ml vs [3842 (1763-8664)] pg/ml and aortic valve area (1.57±0.43) cm2 vs (0.58±0.23) cm2 allP<0.05. Within 6 months after TAVR, LVEF was continuously increasing especially in Cardiac dysfunction group; MG, PV and NT-proBNP level were continuously decreasing, NYHA grade was continuously improving, allP<0.05. Conclusion: TAVR was an effective treatment in AS patients with surgical contradiction or STS high risk score; it may continuously improve cardiac function, especially in patients with left heart dysfunction.
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Objective: To establish the aortic regurgitation model in Chinese miniature pigs under echocardiography guidance. Methods: The animal models were established by following steps: general anesthesia, measuring body weight and then receiving echocardiography examination to exclude aortic valve lesions; carotid artery was exposured by surgery, catheter was sent to aortic sinus with stiff guide wire penetrates and the position of catheter was adjusted to obtain aortic valve damage. The aortic valve injury and regurgitation were evaluated by ultrasound; then the pigs were killed and the heart was taken to observe aortic valve damage. Results: A total of 7 pigs were used including 4 male and 3 female with the mean body weight of (24.7 ± 3.6) kg. Aortic regurgitation model was successfully established in 5 pigs including 1 mild, 1 mild-moderate, 2 moderate, 1 severe aortic valve regurgitation, and 4 were with valve lealfets perforation and 1 with lealfets tearing. Conclusion:①Echocardiography can smoothly guide wire go through aortic valve and make valve damage at different degrees, it is reliable to establish aortic valve regurgitation model in experimental pigs.②Echocardiography may clearly identify the position and degree for aortic valve injury.
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Objective: To retrospectively analyze the ascending aortic diameter (AAD) changes in patients after mechanical aortic valve replacement (AVR). Methods: The medical records and echocardiography reports in patients who received AVR or bivalve valve replacement (BVR) in our hospital from 2000-01 to 2001-12 were retrieved, the retrieval conditions were as aortic valve structure must be mechanical and the follow-up echocardiography examination should be more than 9 years. The clinical information, pre- and post-operative 2-dimentional transthoracic echocardiography reports were collected, the follow-up echocardiography periods were ≤3-year, 3-year9-year. AAD changes at different periods were compared. According to baseline AAD, the patients were divided into AAD Results: A total of 141 patients were enrolled form 595 echocardiography reports which included 75 male, the patients were at the mean age of (45.5 ± 11.2) years with mean follow-up time of (7.59 ± 3.38) years. Compared with baseline level, the follow-up AAD was similar between ≤3-year and 3-year0.05; while the follow-up AAD was different between 6-year9-year patients,P Conclusion: AAD dilatation were gradually occurring after mechanical AVR, the patients with AAD≥35 mm had the higher risk for ascending aortic events, therefore special attention should be taken in patients with aortic valve disease combining AAD dilatation during surgical treatment.
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Objective To evaluation the diagnostic value of echocardiography in mechanical prosthesis valve dysfunction(MPVD).Methods Fifty-two patients who underwent reoperation due to MPVD were included,and the preoperative,introperative and postoperative results of echocardiography was compared with the results of surgery or pathologic diagnosis.Results The etiology of MPVD based on cardiac surgery was thrombus in 12,fibrous tissue hyperplasia in 23,thrombus and fibrous tissue hyperplasia in 16,lost of mechanical disc in 1.The types of MPVD diagnosed by echocardiography were stenosis in 29,regurgitation in 2,stenosis and regrigitation in 12,intermittent obstruction in 8,and total obstruction in 1.Successful assessment of prosthetic disc by transthoracic echocardiography was 78.4％ and can be improved to 96.1 ％ when combined with transesophageal echocardiography.Complementary message by transesophageal echocardiography were provided in 10 patients and corrective message in 1 patient.No recurrent MPVD was find during the follow-up.Conclusions Echocardiography can be used as the frist choice for the evaluation of the MPVD and can make precise assessment of the abnormal hemodynamic change and state of motion of the valve.
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Objective: To explore the clinical, pathological and echocardiographic characteristics of rare primary non-mucinous cardiac tumor (PNCT) and to investigate the diagnostic value of echocardiography in benign and malignant PNCT with various pathological classiifcations. Methods: We retrospectively studied 32 PNCT patients including 21 benign and 11 malignant patients treated in our hospital from 2003-01 to 2013-02. There were 23 male and 9 female from 0.5 to 66 (36.92 ± 20.17) years of age. We analyzed the clinical information of echocardiography, CT, MRI and operation, and the ifndings were conifrmed by pathology. Results: Statistic analysis presented that there were more male PNCT patients than female, the ratio of male/female in benign patients was 16/5, in malignant patients was 7/4, P0.05, and either infant or adult could suffer from PNCT. Benign PNCT was more in left heart and malignant PNCT was more in right heart. Compared with benign PNCT, malignant lesions were usually no base, with irregular shape, pericardial effusion and surrounding tissue adhesion. Conclusion: Echocardiography was sensitive for diagnosing the patients with PNCT, it could preliminarily identify benign and malignant lesions with different ultrasonographic manifestation.
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Objective: To evaluate the intro-operative transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) for extended septal myectomy in patients with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyophathy (HCM). Methods: A total of 56 obstructive HCM patients with extended septal myectomy in our hospital from 2012-01 to 2012-12 were retrospectively studied. The results of pre-operative transthoracic echocardiography, intro-operative TEE and post-operative transthoracic echocardiography were analyzed and compared. Results: There were 36 male and 20 female patients with the average age of (46.1 ± 11.3) years. The pre-operative width of inter ventricular septal was (26.1 ± 6.9) mm, left ventricular outlfow tract (LVOT) pressure gradient was (87.5 ± 12.5) mmHg. All patients received successful operation, no in-hospital death, no TEE related complication. The removed ventricular septal thickness was at (10.7 ± 2.1) mm, length at (39.1±5.5) mm. Compared with pre-operative transthoracic echocardiography, TEE indicated the immediate drop of post-operative LVOT peak velocity (4.57 ± 0.99)m/s vs (1.68±0.46)m/s and LVOT peak gradient (87.5 ± 34.4) vs (11.3 ± 7.0) mmHg, both P Conclusion: TEE is safe for extended septal myectomy in obstructive HCM patients. It may pre-operatively identify the cause and degree of MR, evaluate the post-operative improvement of LVOT obstruction and MR. Meanwhile, TEE may ifnd the surgical complication for in time correction in relevant patients.
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Objective To explore the value and methods of echocardiographic application in percutaneous left atrial appendage(LAA) closure for stroke prevention in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation.Methods 6 male patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation were enrolled for percutaneous LAA closure,the mean age was (68.7 ± 5.6) years old,the mean CHADS2 (congestive heart failure,hypertension,age≥75 years,diabetes mellitus,and prior stroke or transient ischemic attacks) score was 3.2 ± 1.0.Rheumatic valvular diseases were excluded by transthoracic eehocardiography(TTE) before closure procedure.Transesophageal echocardiography(TEE) was performed to guide the punctures of the atrial septum and then monitored the operation all through the closure procedure.Diameter of LAA orifice was measure by TEE to help choosing the closure device.Immediate results of closure and complications were inspected by TEE simultaneously.24 hours,7 days,3 months,6 months and 1 year follow-up were performed using TTE.Results All the 6 patients underwent LAA closure successfully.3 LAmbre(Lifetech Scientific,Shenzhen) devices and 3 Watchman(Boston Scientific,Natick,Massachusetts) devices were implanted respectively in the 6 patients.Mean diameter of the LAA orifice was (22.4 ± 3.3)mm,and mean size of the closure devices was (28.0 ± 2.9) mm.2 mm in width residual flow at the inferior edge of closure device existed in 1 ease.No complication was observed.Post-procedure 24 hours and 7 days post-procedure followup showed optimal results in all cases.Conclusions Implantation of both LAA closure devices can be performed with high success rates in patients with nonvalvula ratrial fibrillation,with high risk for stroke,and who either had contraindication or were not willing to accept oral antieoagulation.Echocardiography plays a core role all through the closure procedure and can make it safer and more efficient.