Surgical closure versus transcatheter closure for ventricular septal defect post-infarction: a meta-analysis

Abstract

Background: Surgical correction of post-infarct ventricular septal defect (PIVSD) is associated with a significant incidence of morbidity and mortality. The authors aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of surgical versus transcatheter approaches in the management of PIVSD. Methods: A systematic review and meta-analysis of retrospective from five databases including the Cochrane Library, PubMed, Web of Science, Ovid, and Scopus) until 9 March 2024 was conducted. Risk ratio (RR) for dichotomous outcomes was used and data with a 95% CI are presented. Results: A total of 7 retrospective observational studies with 603 patients were included in the analysis. Surgical closure was associated with a significantly lower short-term mortality and lower number of residual shunt or re-intervention rate compared to percutaneous closure, with a relative risk (RR) of 1.21 (95% CI:1:00–1.46, P = 0.05) and 2.68 (95% CI: 1.46–4.91, P = 0.001), respectively. Surgical closure was associated with a non-significantly lower long-term mortality rate compared to percutaneous closure, with a relative risk (RR) of 1.10 (95% CI: 0.82–1.48, P = 0.52). No difference is reported when time from acute myocardial infarction (AMI) or PIVSD to intervention is compared groups, with a relative risk (RR) of -0.24 (95% CI: −4.49 to 4.2, P = 0.91). Conclusion: Our meta-analysis shied the light on the significance of surgical closure in terms of short-term mortality and the need for re-intervention. However, no significant difference was observed in terms of long-term mortality and time to intervention.