Selection for transcatheter versus surgical aortic valve replacement and mid-term survival: results of the AUTHEARTVISIT study

Abstract

Abstract OBJECTIVES Limited data are available from randomized trials comparing outcomes between transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) and surgery in patients with different risks and with follow-up of at least 4 years or longer. In this large, population-based cohort study, long-term mortality and morbidity were investigated in patients undergoing aortic valve replacement (AVR) for severe aortic stenosis using a surgically implanted bioprosthesis (surgical/biological aortic valve replacement; sB-AVR) or TAVR. METHODS Individual data from the Austrian Insurance Funds from 2010 through 2020 were analysed. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality, assessed in the overall and propensity score-matched populations. Secondary outcomes included reoperation and cardiovascular events. RESULTS From January 2010 through December 2020, a total of 18 882 patients underwent sB-AVR (n = 11 749; 62.2%) or TAVR (n = 7133; 37.8%); median follow-up was 5.8 (95% CI 5.7–5.9) years (maximum 12.3 years). The risk of all-cause mortality was higher with TAVR compared with sB-AVR: hazard ratio 1.552, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.469–1.640, P < 0.001; propensity score-matched hazard ratio 1.510, 1.403–1.625, P < 0.001. Estimated median survival was 8.8 years (95% CI 8.6–9.1) with sB-AVR versus 5 years (4.9–5.2) with TAVR. Estimated 5-year survival probability was 0.664 (0.664–0.686) with sB-AVR versus 0.409 (0.378–0.444) with TAVR overall, and 0.690 (0.674–0.707) and 0.560 (0.540–0.582), respectively, with propensity score matching. Separate subgroup analyses for patients aged 65–75 years and >75 years indicated a significant survival benefit in patients selected for sB-AVR in both groups. Other predictors of mortality were age, sex, previous heart failure, diabetes and chronic kidney disease. CONCLUSIONS In this retrospective national population-based study, selection for TAVR was significantly associated with higher all-cause mortality compared with sB-AVR in patients ≥65 years with severe, symptomatic aortic stenosis in the >2-year follow-up.