Follow-up of balloon aortic valvuloplasty in young adults--a combined hemodynamic and Doppler echocardiographic study.

Percutaneous Balloon Valvuloplasty was performed in 25 patients with severe aortic stenosis (Aortic valve area index: 0.23 to 0.70, mean 0.36 +/- 0.11 cm2/m2). The mean age was 23 +/- 15 (range 6-66) years, and majority (n = 18) had noncalcific valves. Valve morphology was bicuspid in 14, tricuspid in 6 and indeterminate in 5. Valvuloplasty resulted in a fall of peak systolic gradient (PSG) from 112 +/- 35 to 34 +/- 16 mmHg (p less than 0.001), and an increase in aortic valve area (index) (AVAI) from 0.36 +/- 0.11 to 0.82 +/- 0.43 cm2/m2 (p less than 0.001). Follow-up data at 16 +/- 6 months were available for 18 patients, 80 per cent of whom registered symptomatic improvement. Repeat catheterization, performed in 12 cases, showed increase of PSG to 53 +/- 22 mmHg and a fall in AVA (1) to 0.62 +/- 0.24 cm2/m2, as compared to the results immediately following the procedure. In addition, 3 patients had their valve areas estimated by doppler echocardiography. Forty-six per cent of these 15 patients (n = 7) showed evidence of restenosis. Four out of these 7 cases had calcific valves, whereas none of the patients who had sustained improvement had calcification. Tricuspid morphology was present in 50 per cent of the group with sustained improvement, as compared to 20 per cent of the group that restenosed. Our preliminary data shows sustained hemodynamic improvement after balloon dilatation in young patients with severe aortic stenosis with noncalcific and tricuspid aortic valve.