Which patients benefit from percutaneous mitral balloon valvuloplasty? Prevalvuloplasty and postvalvuloplasty variables that predict long-term outcome.

BACKGROUND: Percutaneous mitral balloon valvuloplasty (PMV) results in good immediate results, particularly in patients with echocardiographic scores (Echo-Sc) < or =8. However, which variables relate to long-term outcome is unclear. METHODS AND RESULTS: We report the immediate and long-term clinical follow-up (mean, 4.2+/-3.7 years; range, 0.5 to 15) of 879 patients who underwent 939 PMV procedures. Patients were divided into 2 groups, Echo-Sc < or =8 (n=601) and Echo-Sc >8 (n=278). PMV resulted in an increase in mitral valve area from 1.0+/-0.3 to 2.0+/-0.6 cm2 in patients with Echo-Sc < or =8 and from 0.8+/-0.3 to 1.6+/-0.6 cm2 in patients with Echo-Sc >8 (P<0.0001). Although adverse events (death, mitral valve surgery, and redo PMV) were low within the first 5 years of follow-up, a progressive number of events occurred beyond this period. Nevertheless, survival (82% versus 57%) and event-free survival (38% versus 22%) at 12-year follow-up was greater in patients with Echo-Sc < or =8 (P<0.0001). Cox regression analysis identified post-PMV mitral regurgitation > or =3+, Echo-Sc >8, age, prior surgical commissurotomy, NYHA functional class IV, pre-PMV mitral regurgitation > or =2+, and higher post-PMV pulmonary artery pressure as independent predictors of combined events at long-term follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: The immediate and long-term outcome of patients undergoing PMV is multifactorial. The use of the Echo-Sc in conjunction with other clinical and morphological predictors of PMV outcome allows identification of patients who will obtain the best outcome from PMV.

Stenting vs. balloon angioplasty with provisional stenting for the treatment of vessels with small reference diameter.

A consecutive series of interventions in vessels with reference diameter < or = 2.75 mm was retrospectively analyzed according to preprocedure strategy: balloon angioplasty with provisional stenting (PTCA group, 73 patients) and primary stenting (PS group, 122 patients). In the PS group, there were more patients with single-vessel disease (54.1% vs. 37.0%; P = 0.021), less patients with three-vessel disease (9.0% vs. 24.7%; P = 0.003), more LAD interventions (54.9% vs. 31.5; P = 0.002), and less left circumflex interventions (22.1% vs. 45.2%; P < 0.001). Reference diameter was larger in the PS group (2.28 +/- 0.35 mm vs. 2.11 +/- 0.36 mm; P = 0.001). Provisional stenting was performed in 39.7% of PTCA group. At long-term outcome, the incidence of composite major events was similar between the PTCA and the PS groups (20.5% vs. 17.2%, respectively; P = NS). Treatment of small vessels with balloon dilatation and provisional stenting or with primary stenting yielded similar late outcomes. Operators' choice of treatment strategy was based on particular angiographic characteristics.