Balloon mitral valvuloplasty in the United States: a 13-year perspective.

BACKGROUND: Incidence and prevalence of mitral stenosis is declining in the US. We performed this study to determine recent trends in utilization, complications, mortality, length of stay, and cost associated with balloon mitral valvuloplasty. METHODS: Utilizing the nationwide inpatient sample database from 1998 to 2010, we identified patients using the International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, Clinical Modification procedure code for "percutaneous valvuloplasty." Patients ≥18 years of age with mitral stenosis were included. Patients with concomitant aortic, tricuspid, or pulmonic stenosis were excluded. Primary outcome included death and procedural complications. RESULTS: A total of 1308 balloon mitral valvuloplasties (weighted n = 6540) were analyzed. There was a 7.5% decrease in utilization of the procedure from 24.6 procedures/10 million population in 1998-2001 to 22.7 procedures/10 million population in 2008-2010 (P for trend = .098). We observed a 15.9% overall procedural complication rate and 1.7% mortality rate. The procedural complication rates have increased in recent years (P = .001), corresponding to increasing age and burden of comorbidities in patients. The mean cost per admission for balloon mitral valvuloplasty has gone up significantly over the 10 years, from $11,668 ± 1046 in 2001 to $23,651 ± 301 in 2010 (P <.001). CONCLUSIONS: In a large cross-sectional study of balloon mitral valvuloplasty in the US, we have reported trends of decreasing overall utilization and increasing procedural complication rates and cost over a period of 13 years.

Comparative study on safety, efficacy, and midterm results of balloon mitral valvotomy performed with triple lumen and double lumen mitral valvotomy catheters.

BACKGROUND: The triple lumen Inoue balloon is routinely used for balloon mitral valvotomy (BMV) in India. Its major limitation is the high cost. The double lumen Accura balloon is less expensive, making it an attractive alternative in the developing countries. The study was meant to assess the safety, efficacy and midterm results of Accura balloon with respect to the Inoue balloon. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 816 consecutive patients, who underwent elective BMV in this Institute from 1997 to 2003, were included in the study. The data of 487 patients who underwent BMV with Accura balloon was compared with 329 patients who underwent BMV with Inoue balloon. The clinical, echocardiographic, and hemodynamic data of these patients were analyzed retrospectively to assess the safety and efficacy of Accura balloon with respect to the Inoue balloon. RESULTS: Immediate procedural success (93.9% in Inoue group and 91.6% in Accura group p. NS) and complications (6.6% in Inoue group and 5.6% in Accura group p. NS) were comparable between the study groups. The two study population had similar restenosis rate and events at 1 year after BMV. Both balloons could be reused multiple times without compromising on the safety and effectiveness. Accura balloons were less costly than Inoue balloon. The reusability with Accura was slightly more and found to be more cost-effective. CONCLUSIONS: Both Accura and Inoue balloon mitral valvotomy balloons are effective in providing relief from hemodynamically significant mitral stenosis in terms of gain in valve area and reduction in trans mitral gradient. Both groups have similar procedural success and complication rates, restenosis, and follow-up events at 1 year. Both balloons could be reused multiple times and Accura balloon is found to be more cost effective.