Abstract Background Transcatheter edge-to-edge repair (TEER) is a recently emerged therapeutic option for functional mitral regurgitation (FMR). Although the mitral annular shape and function may play an important role in the pathophysiology of FMR, few reports have evaluated the impact of TEER. We sought to investigate the impact of TEER on the mitral annulus and its motion in FMR compared with that of mitral annuloplasty (MAP). Methods Using three-dimensional transesophageal echocardiography, we evaluated the mitral annular morphology and dynamic motion in patients who underwent TEER or MAP before and after the procedures. Mitral annulus analysis was performed by a semi-automatic program to create a dynamic model of the three-dimensional structure, where the end-systolic annular structure was semi-automatically annotated and manually corrected, followed by automatic tracking of the annulus throughout the cardiac cycle . The mitral annular parameters such as mitral annular diameters, area, circumference, and height at all frames were automatically calculated from the model. In order to align the cardiac phase in each patient (i.e. to set the start and the end of diastole and systole at the same time for all patient), data were spline-interpolated to 100 systolic and 200 diastolic frames and then statistically analyzed. The dynamic changes of the parameters during the cardiac cycle were calculated as (maximum – minimum value) / maximum value after the interpolation. Results Patients who underwent TEER (n=20, 69±15 years, 40% female) and those who underwent MAP (n=16, 64±11 years, 6% female) had similar echocardiographic characteristics before the procedures. The maximum anteroposterior diameter and annulus area decreased after both TEER and MAP, while the intercommissural diameter decreased only after MAP but not after TEER. After TEER, the dynamic change in anteroposterior diameter throughout the cardiac cycle tended to decrease (p=0.055), while intercommissural change rather increased (p=0.049), resulting in preserved change in annulus area (p=0.74). After MAP, changes in both diameters and area decreased significantly (all p<0.05). MAP was associated with postoperative mitral annulus area immobility after adjustment (p=0.030). Conclusions The dynamic motion of the mitral annulus in patients with FMR was better preserved after TEER than after MAP. There was a decreasing trend in anteroposterior motion, which was compensated for by intercommissural motion after TEER. Future studies are needed to determine the association of these results with cardiac function and prognosis.
Since 1974, we have performed modified Fontan procedure on 106 patients, ranging in ages from 1 to 32 years, consisting of 44 cases of tricuspid atresia (TA), 21 with univentricular heart (UVH) of right ventricular type, 18 with UVH of left ventricular type, for which ventricular partition was unfeasible, and 23 with various complex anomalies. Hospital mortality rates for TA and other complex anomalies were 11.4 and 11.3%, respectively. Surgical results have markedly improved recently. Since 1986, 50 cases underwent Fontan procedure with 3 hospital deaths (6.0%). Late death occurred in 4 cases in a mean follow-up period of 49 months. Regarding the indication for operation, majority of patients had 2 to 3 parameters which were out of 10 criteria for Fontan procedure. Regurgitation of atrioventricular valve was repaired by annuloplasty in 19 patients underwent Fontan procedure and 17 survived. Abnormal systemic venous connection was seen in 11 cases and all survived. Association of total anomalous pulmonary venous connection is still a difficult problem and 2 of 5 cases died. Fontan procedure was performed in 8 patients following palliative right ventricular outflow reconstruction for poor development of pulmonary artery and 7 survived. Cumulative mortality rate for the entire series was relatively well at 15.1%.
To understand why transgenic Nicotiana occidentalis plants expressing a functional movement protein (MP) of Apple chlorotic leaf spot virus (ACLSV) show specific resistance to Grapevine berry inner necrosis virus (GINV), the MPs of ACLSV (50KP) and GINV (39KP) were fused to green, yellow, or cyan fluorescent proteins (GFP, YFP, or CFP). These fusion proteins were transiently expressed in leaf cells of both transgenic (50KP) and nontransgenic (NT) plants, and the intracellular and intercellular trafficking and tubule-inducing activity of these proteins were compared. The results indicate that in epidermal cells and protoplasts from 50KP plant leaves, the trafficking and tubule-inducing activities of GINV-39KP were specifically blocked while those of ACLSV-50KP and Apple stem grooving virus MP (36KP) were not affected. Additionally, when 39KP-YFP and 50KP-CFP were coexpressed in the leaf epidermis of NT plants, the fluorescence of both proteins was confined to single cells, indicating that 50KP-CFP interferes with the cell-to-cell trafficking of 39KP-YFP and vice versa. Mutational analyses of 50KP showed that the deletion mutants that retained the activities described above still blocked cell-to-cell trafficking of 39KP, but the dysfunctional 50KP mutants could no longer impede cell-to-cell movement of 39KP. Transgenic plants expressing the functional 50KP deletion mutants showed specific resistance against GINV. In contrast, transgenic plants expressing the dysfunctional 50KP mutants did not show any resistance to the virus. From these results, we conclude that the specific resistance of 50KP plants to GINV is due to the ability of the 50KP to block intracellular and intercellular trafficking of GINV 39KP.
Abstract Background Tricuspid regurgitation (TR) sometimes deteriorate late after left-sided valve surgery. The recent guidelines recommend tricuspid valve repair at the same time as the left-sided valve surgery. However, little is known about the pathophysiology that leads to severe TR after left-sided valve surgery. Purpose To clarify the risk factors of the patients with severe TR after left-sided valve surgery. Methods We retrospectively investigated consecutive 526 patients diagnosed as severe TR from January 2004 to December 2018 at our hospital. Clinical background, echocardiographic parameters were evaluated. Demographic information and clinical data (including age, electrocardiograms, type of left-sided valve surgery, underlying valve diseases and history of pacemaker or ICD implantation) were obtained by chart review. Results Of the 526 patients with severe TR, 107 patients were after a left-sided valve surgery. Patients developed severe TR at a mean of 14.8 ± 8 years after surgery.The surgical indications were as follows: mitral valve stenosis (74 patients, 69%), mitral valve regurgitation (43 patients, 40%), aortic valve stenosis (37 patients, 35%) and aortic regurgitation (28 patients, 26%), respectively. The mean age at diagnosis of severe TR was 74 ± 10 years and 75 were female (70%). Among those patients, 32 patients (30%) had a tricuspid annuloplasty (TAP) with the first left-sided valve surgery. Ninety-five patients (88%) had atrial fibrillation (AF), 75 patients (70%) were diagnosed as rheumatic heart disease, 64 patients (60%) had pulmonary artery hypertension (PH) and 28 patients (26%) had a permanent pacemaker or ICD implantation. There were only 12 patients who had severe TR without AF. Eight of 12 patients without AF had PH, and permanent pacemakers were implanted in remaining 4 patients. Conclusions Almost all patients with severe TR after left-sided valve surgery present with AF and prevalence of rheumatic heart disease were about 70 percent. These two factors may be one of the important risk factors for severe TR after left-sided valve surgery.
From 1982 through 1990, 13 patients with double inlet ventricle and common atrio-ventricular valve underwent definitive cardiac surgery. Nine patients simultaneously had anomalous systemic venous connection and 4 had anomalous pulmonary venous connection. One patient with double inlet left ventricle underwent a successful partition of ventricle and atrio-ventricular valve. All other 12 patients underwent a Fontan operation, which utilized different techniques to deal with various forms of anomalous systemic and pulmonary venous connection. Four patients with common atrioventricular valve regurgitation underwent a Fontan operation combined with a concomitant circular annuloplasty of atrio-ventricular valve. In all 4 patients, the degree of regurgitation decreased postoperatively. There was one operative death (mortality 7.7%). Most of patients with double inlet ventricle and common atrio-ventricular valve now are considered to be suitable not for partition but for the Fontan operation. Because of the complexity of anatomic variables, however, the repair of anomalous systemic or pulmonary venous connections in conjunction with the Fontan operation requires an individualised plan in each patient to provide unobstructed systemic and pulmonary venous pathways. We think that a circular annuloplasty could effectively decrease the degree of atrio-ventricular valve regurgitation in most cases.