May be possible to ID patients who may not benefit and who should be counseled accordingly
TUESDAY, March 10, 2015 (HealthDay News) — Of more than 12,000 patients who underwent transcatheter aortic valve replacement, nearly one-quarter died within a year, while roughly 4 percent had a stroke, new research reveals. However, almost half who survived past one year weren’t re-hospitalized in that time, while less than one-quarter were readmitted once. The research findings were reported in the March 10 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
David Holmes Jr., M.D., a cardiologist with the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and colleagues tracked 12,182 patients who underwent the procedure at 299 U.S. hospitals between 2011 and 2013. Patients’ median age was 84 (half were older, half younger), and 52 percent were women.
While about six in 10 patients were able to go home directly after the procedure was completed, 7 percent died within the first month, according to the report. The study authors noted that the 24 percent of patients who died within the first year tended to be male, older, and also had end-stage kidney disease and/or severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. By contrast, female patients appeared to face a higher risk for stroke than males, the investigators found.
Holmes told HealthDay that the findings paint a more realistic picture for patients. “There will be some patients who will say it seems pretty great after seeing this information,” he said. “There are some who will say, ‘Gosh, I’m 90 but if this can improve my quality of life I’ll go for it.’ There will be others who will just want to stay the course and see how things go,” Holmes added. “The important part is we now have data that we can use to improve patient-centric conversations.”
Several authors disclosed financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry.
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