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Background Most patients undergoing left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) are elderly individuals with atrial fibrillation (AF) and many comorbidities, which may elevate the risk for complications associated with contrast agents with fluoroscopic image-guided procedure. . Objectives This retrospective study of patients with AF at high risk for use of contrast agents evaluated the feasibility and safety of LAAC using Percutaneous and Non-fluoroscopic procedure with transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) as the only image guidance relative to those under fluoroscopic image guidance. Methods From September 2017 to December 2020, a cohort of 126 consecutive eligible patients with AF undergoing LAAC at our center were retrospectively recruited and divided into 2 groups according to image guidance modality, namely, a TEE group (n = 32; mean age, 75.4 ± 7.9 years; 25 (78.1%) with stage III chronic kidney disease [preoperative eGFR, 52.7 ± 8.8 mL/min/1.73m ] and 7 (21.9%) allergic to contrast agent) and a fluoroscopic group (n = 94; mean age, 65.7 ± 10.0 years). Propensity score matching was used to adjust for baseline differences. Results Propensity-score matching yielded 25 pairs of patients with similarly distributed age (72.9 ± 6.9 vs. 73.1 ± 4.9 years, p = .925), gender (10:15 vs 11:14, p = 1), weight (68.3 ± 11.2 vs. 68.1 ± 12.3 kg, p = .948) and ALT level (20.0 ± 9.8 vs. 22.5 ± 14.2 U/L, p = .482). The LAA was successfully occluded in all patients with statistically similar success rate (100% vs. 100%, p = 1), hospitalization duration (5.0 [3.0, 7.0] vs. 5.0 [3.0, 6.0] days, p = .498), and rates of complications: 1 (4.2%) pericardial effusion and 1 (4.2%) residual shunt in the TEE group, and 5 (20%) residual shunts, 1 (4.2%) pericardial effusion, 1 (4.2%) myocardial infarction and 1 (4.2%) access-related complications in the fluoroscopic group. There were no deaths. The overall incidence rate of all procedure-related complications (6.2% vs . 18.1%, p = .153) at mean 22.2±4.5 months follow-up was statistically similar. Conclusion In patients with AF of high risk for use of contrast agents, LAAC under non-fluoroscopic guidance appears feasible and safe with similar outcomes to that under fluoroscopic guidance.

Objective Percutaneous closure of the small Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA) that a conventional 0.035″hydrophilic guide wire cannot pass through was challenging. A new technique of using a coronary guidewire with microcatheter assistance in the closure of the small PDA via AmplatzerDuctOccluderⅡ(ADOⅡ) was developed. Methods This is a single-center, retrospective study from April 2017 to December 2019, including 12 patients. A 0.014″ coronary guidewire (BMW, Abbott, tip load 0.7g) with the assistance of a 1.9F-2.4F catheter was advanced into the PDA. A 4F or 5F delivery system was chosen to deliver the ADOⅡdevice by either an antegrade (venous) or retrograde (arterial) approach with the support of a semi-rail or a full rail: a guidewire-established femoral arteriovenous loop.All patients completed a 6-month follow-up. Results Successful PDA closure via this technique in all patients was achieved (n = 15). The average diameter of the PDAs detected by transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) and aortic angiography were1.61 ± 0.53mm (1.00-2.50mm), 0.76 ± 0.83mm (0.50-0.80mm) respectively. No complications were found during the procedure and the follow-up period. Conclusion Using a coronary guidewirewith the assistance of a microcatheter to close small PDA is safe and effective, and thereby offers a new opportunity to improve the success rate of percutaneous closure of a PDA.

BACKGROUND: Balloon-expandable valves (BEV) and self-expanding valves (SEV) for transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) have shown promising results in Western populations. Herein, we comparatively evaluated their hemodynamics and early clinical outcomes in a Chinese population. METHODS: One hundred seventy-eight patients with symptomatic aortic stenosis who had undergone transfemoral TAVR using SEV (n=153; Venus-A, 97; VitaFlow, 56) or BEV (n=25; Sapien3) from September 2020 to April 2021 were retrospectively enrolled, and 25 pairs were propensity-score matched for 10 baseline variables. The primary study outcomes were aortic valve hemodynamics and postoperative complications at discharge and 3-month follow-up. RESULTS: TAVR was successful in all patients. Compared with SEV group, the BEV group had similarly distributed baseline characteristics, procedural time, hospital stay, new pacemaker implantation, and paravalvular regurgitation grade. We also observed that the BEV group had lower rates of balloon pre-dilation (60% vs. 92%, P=0.018), post-dilation (0 vs. 20%, P=0.050) and second valve implantation (0 vs. 24%, P=0.022); higher mean transaortic gradient (14.3±6.1 vs. 10.8±4.9, P=0.030) and proportion of patients with elevated gradients (20% vs. 0, P=0.050) at discharge; and similar rehospitalization, mean transaortic gradient, new pacemaker implantation, and paravalvular regurgitation grade than the SEV group at the 3-month follow-up. There were no deaths in either group. However, the proportion of patients with elevated gradients in SEV group was higher at 3 months than before discharge (24% vs. 0, P=0.022). CONCLUSIONS: BEV and SEV for transfemoral TAVR appear comparably safe and effective, with high device success and favorable 3-month clinical outcomes. However, the transaortic gradient and new pacemaker implantation in the SEV group increased during follow-up, warranting larger studies with longer-term follow-up.

Background: Conventional percutaneous closure of patent foramen ovale (PFO) is usually performed under the guidance of fluoroscopy. Whether closure of PFO under transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) guidance only is safe and effective is unknown. The present study therefore aimed to assess the safety and efficacy of percutaneous closure of PFO under TTE guidance only. Methods: This study retrospectively enrolled a total of 52 consecutive patients (55.8% male, mean age 34.0±13.0 years, range, 10–59 years) with PFO treated at our institution from June 2015 to September 2017 by percutaneous closure under echocardiographic guidance only. The patients mean body weight was 58.7±10.8 kg. Patients underwent follow-up by TTE immediately post procedure by electrocardiogram and TTE at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months after discharge and annually thereafter, and by clinical evaluation at all time points. Results: Of the 52 patients, 47 (90.4%) were successfully treated by percutaneous closure under TTE guidance. The mean procedure duration (from puncture to sheath removal) was 21.0±6.2 (range, 11–33) minutes. A trivial residual shunt which disappeared 24 hours later was observed in only 1 (1.9%) patient immediately post procedure. Median hospital stay was 3.0 days without severe complications such as peripheral vascular injury or cardiac perforation at discharge. At median 15.5 (11.3, 18.0) months follow-up, there were no complications such as death, stroke, transient ischemic attack (TIA) and residual shunt. Conclusions: In this single center study of mostly lean patients, percutaneous closure of PFO under TTE guidance as the only imaging tool appeared effective at midterm follow-up, while avoiding radiation exposure, endotracheal intubation and contrast agent use.

Introduction Percutaneous patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) occlusion has become the preferred therapeutic option, which uses fluoroscopy as the guidance. To reduce the x-ray exposure, PDA occlusion using the Amplatzer Duct Occluder II (ADO II) under guidance of transthoracic echocardiography only was conducted. This single center study aims to access the safety and efficiency of this new strategy. Methods and Results From June 2013 to May 2015, 63 consecutive PDA patients underwent transthoracic echocardiography-guided PDA occlusion through the femoral artery. Outpatient follow-up was conducted at 1, 3, and 6 months, and yearly. Sixty-two patients successfully underwent echocardiography-guided percutaneous PDA occlusion. One patient was converted to minimally invasive transthoracic occlusion due to failure of delivery sheath passage through tortuous PDA. Mean procedure duration was 24.3 ± 7.0 minutes; ADO II diameter averaged 4.6 ± 0.9 mm; 8 cases showed traces of residual shunt immediately after operation which resolved after 24 hours; and mean hospital stay was 3.4 ± 0.5 days. There was no occluder migration, hemolysis, pericardial effusion, pulmonary branch or aortic stenosis at mean 13.5 ± 4.8 months follow-up. Conclusions This study demonstrated that percutaneous PDA occlusion can be successfully performed under guidance of transthoracic echocardiography only and appears safe and effective while avoiding radiation and contrast agent use.

The objective of this study was to assess the feasibility of percutaneous balloon pulmonary valvuloplasty (PBPV) under echocardiographic guidance only.PBPV has become the preferred choice for pulmonary valve stenosis (PS). We report the first-in-human successful PBPV under only echocardiography guidance for isolated PS.From March 2013 to December 2014, 34 patients with congenital PS underwent PBPV with echocardiography as the only imaging modality in the ordinary operation room or catheter lab. Outpatient follow-up including chest radiography, electrocardiography, and transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) was conducted at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months.All 34 patients successfully underwent PBPV under echocardiography guidance without radiation and contrast agent. The pulmonic transvalvular pressure gradient dropped from 62.8 ± 10.1 mm Hg to 14.7 ± 4.2 mm Hg measured on catheterization (P .05). The balloon diameter/pulmonary annulus diameter ratio was 1.34 ± 0.07. Slight regurgitation of the pulmonary valve occurred in five patients and mild pulmonary regurgitation occurred in one patients. The pulmonic transvalvular pressure gradient measured on TTE 12 months after the procedure was 14.1 ± 4.6 mm Hg. No pericardial effusion and peripheral vascular complications occurred.This study demonstrated that PBPV can be successfully performed under only echocardiography guidance and appears safe and effective while avoiding radiation and contrast agent use.

Demonstrate the benefits of percutaneous atrial septal defect (ASD) closure under guidance of transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) without fluoroscopy.From February 2013 to April 2014, 127 consecutive patients with an isolated type II ASD were recruited to undergo percutaneous closure under either TTE (n = 60, TTE group) or TEE (n = 67, TEE group) guidance. The TTE group received local anesthesia or sedation with propofol, and the TEE group received general anesthesia with endotracheal intubation. Follow-up examinations were performed for both groups at 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year after discharge and annually thereafter.The TTE group had a significantly shorter procedure time and respirator ventilation duration than the TEE group. The dose of propofol required, the cost, and the pharyngeal complication rate were significantly lower in the TTE group than in the TEE group. The median follow-up of 11.6 months was uneventful in all patients.Percutaneous ASD closure with TTE guidance as the only imaging tool avoids fluoroscopy, endotracheal intubation, and probe insertion and is associated with a satisfactory procedural success rate and lower costs. This procedure is a safe and reliable treatment for ASD.