Percutaneous interventricular septal access in a patient with aortic and mitral mechanical valves: a novel technique for catheter ablation of ventricular tachycardia.
Percutaneous interventricular septal access in a patient with aortic and mitral mechanical valves: a novel technique for catheter ablation of ventricular tachycardia.
Project description:In patients with mechanical valves in the aortic and mitral positions, percutaneous access to the left ventricle (LV) via a transfemoral approach for catheter ablation of ventricular tachycardia (VT) has been considered infeasible. To describe the outcomes of a novel percutaneous trans-right atrial (RA) access to the LV via a femoral venous approach for catheter ablation of VT in patients with mechanical aortic and mitral valves. This observational study included consecutive patients with mechanical valves in the aortic and mitral positions and recurrent monomorphic drug-refractory VT associated with an LV substrate. Percutaneous LV access was performed from a transfemoral venous route with the aid of a deflectable sheath and a radiofrequency wire by creating an iatrogenic Gerbode defect with direct puncture of the inferior and medial aspect of the RA, adjacent to the inferior-septal process of the LV (ISP-LV), under intracardiac echography guidance. Once the wire crossed to the LV, balloon dilatation of the ventriculotomy site (with a noncompliant balloon; diameter, 8 to 10 mm) was performed to facilitate passage of the sheath within the LV. Percutaneous trans-RA access to the LV via puncture of the ISP-LV to perform catheter ablation of VT in patients with mechanical aortic and mitral valves. Feasibility and safety of a trans-RA access to the LV for catheter ablation of VT. A total of 4 patients (mean [SD] age, 60 [7] years; mean [SD] LV ejection fraction, 31% [9%]) with recurrent VT associated with an LV substrate (ischemic cardiomyopathy, 3 patients; nonischemic cardiomyopathy, 1 patient) and mechanical valves in the aortic and mitral position underwent trans-RA access through the ISP-LV for catheter ablation of VT. The time to obtain LV access ranged from 60 minutes (first case) to 22 minutes (last case) (mean [SD], 36 [15] minutes). No complications associated with the access occurred. In particular, in the 3 patients with preserved atrioventricular conduction at baseline, no new conduction abnormalities were observed after the access. Complete VT noninducibility at programmed ventricular stimulation was achieved in 3 cases, and no patient had VT recurrence at a median follow-up of 14 months (range, 6-21 months). A percutaneous trans-RA access to the LV via a femoral venous approach for catheter ablation of VT in patients with mechanical aortic and mitral valves is feasible and appears safe. This novel technique may allow for catheter ablation of VT in a population of patients in whom conventional LV access via retrograde aortic or atrial transseptal routes is not possible.
Project description:We present a patient with a history of heart failure and metallic aortic and mitral valves surgeries, who required ablation for a drug-refractory left ventricular tachycardia. But the metallic valves prohibited the insertion of catheters via retrograde or via trans-septal approaches. Therefore, we decided to perform catheter ablation by direct left ventricle puncture through a minithoracotomy. The arrhythmia was successfully ablated via of trans-apical approach and did not recur at six months follow-up.
Project description:Radiofrequency catheter ablation has become an established treatment for ventricular tachycardia. The exponential increase in procedures has provided further insights into mechanisms causing arrhythmias and identification of ablation targets with the development of new mapping strategies. Since the definition of criteria to identify myocardial dense scar, borderzone and normal myocardium, and the description of isolated late potentials, local abnormal ventricular activity and decrementing evoked potential mapping, substrate-guided ablation has progressively become the method of choice to guide procedures. Accordingly, a wide range of ablation strategies have been developed from scar homogenization to scar dechanneling or core isolation using increasingly complex and precise tools such as multipolar or omnipolar mapping catheters. Despite these advances long-term success rates for VT ablation have remained static and lower in nonischemic than ischemic heart disease because of the more patchy distribution of myocardial scar. Ablation aims to deliver an irreversible loss of cellular excitability by myocardial heating to a temperatures exceeding 50°C. Many indicators of ablation efficacy have been developed such as contact force, impedance drop, force-time integral and ablation index, mostly validated in atrial fibrillation ablation. In ventricular procedures there is limited data and ablation lesion parameters have been scarcely investigated. Since VT arrhythmia recurrence can be related to inadequate RF lesion formation, it seems reasonable to establish robust markers of ablation efficacy.
Project description:Graphical abstract Highlights PIMSRA offers a less invasive option to treat residual LVOTO after ASA. Multimodality imaging is necessary to guide this procedure. Myocardial contrast echocardiography can be used to confirm successful PIMSRA.
Project description:BackgroundCatheter ablation of ventricular tachycardia (VT) can be technically challenging due to difficulty with catheter positioning in the left ventricle (LV) and achieving stable contact. The Hansen Sensei Robotic system (HRS) has been used in atrial fibrillation but its utility in VT is unclear.ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to test the technical feasibility of robotic catheter ablation of LV ventricular tachycardia (VT) using the HRS.MethodsTwenty-three patients underwent LV VT mapping and ablation with the HRS via a transseptal, transmitral valve approach. Nineteen patients underwent substrate mapping and ablation (18 had ischemic cardiomyopathy, 1 had an apical variant of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy). Four patients had focal VT requiring LV VT mapping and ablation. Procedural endpoints included substrate modification by endocardial scar border ablation and elimination of late potentials, or elimination of inducible focal VT.ResultsMapping and ablation were entirely robotic without requiring manual catheter manipulation in all patients and reaching all LV regions with stable contact. Fluoroscopy time of the LV procedure was 22.2 ± 11.2 minutes. Radiofrequency time was 33 ± 21 minutes. Total procedural times were 231 ± 76 minutes. Complications included a left groin hematoma (opposite to the HRS sheath), 1 pericardial effusion without tamponade that was drained successfully, and transient right ventricular failure in a patient with previous left ventricular assist device. At 13.4 ± 6.7 months of follow-up (range 1-19 months), recurrence of VT occurred in 3 of 23 patients.ConclusionOur initial experience suggests that the HRS allows successful mapping and ablation of LV VT.