Prognostic significance of right ventricle to pulmonary artery coupling in patients with mitral regurgitation treated with the MitraClip system.

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the prognostic impact of baseline tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion/pulmonary artery systolic pressure (TAPSE/PASP) ratio, as an expression of the right ventricle-pulmonary artery (RV-PA) coupling, in patients with mitral regurgitation (MR) treated with the MitraClip.

BACKGROUND

Impaired RV to PA coupling is considered a marker of RV dysfunction.

METHODS

From February 2016 to February 2020, a total of 165 patients were evaluated and stratified in two groups according to a prespecified value of TAPSE/PASP ratio ≤ 0.36.

RESULTS

The median patients' age was 79 (men: 62.4%). Sixty-three patients (38.1%) presented TAPSE/PASP ≤ 0.36 and were then compared with patients with TAPSE/PASP > 0.36. Functional MR etiology was more frequent in TAPSE/PASP ≤ 0.36 (71.4%; p = 0.046). Acute technical success was achieved in 92.7% of the population, without any significant difference between the two groups of study and with sustained results at 30-day (device success: 85.5%; procedural success: 84.8%). On multivariate Cox regression analysis, after correction for body mass index, chronic kidney disease and left ventricle ejection fraction ≥30% but <50%, TAPSE/PASP ≤ 0.36 remained a sustained predictor of mortality and hospitalization for heart failure at one year after MitraClip (hazard ratio: 3.87; 95% confidence interval: 1.83-8.22; p ≤ 0.001). Kaplan-Meier all-cause mortality and heart failure hospitalization rates at one year were consequently higher in patients with TAPSE/PASP ≤ 0.36 (39.4% vs. 14.8%; log-rank p ≤ 0.001).

CONCLUSION

Baseline TAPSE/PASP ratio seems independently associated with all-cause mortality and heart failure hospitalization after MitraClip both in functional and degenerative MR.