Abstract
BACKGROUND: The MitraClip procedure was established as a therapeutic alternative to mitral valve surgery for symptomatic patients with severe mitral regurgitation (MR) at prohibitive surgical risk. In this study, the aim was to evaluate 5-year outcomes after MitraClip. METHODS: Consecutive patients undergoing the MitraClip system were prospectively included. All patients underwent clinical follow-up and transthoracic echocardiography. RESULTS: Two hundred sixty-five patients (age: 81.4 ± 8.1 years, 46.7% female, logistic EuroSCORE: 19.7 ± 16.7%) with symptomatic MR (60.5% secondary MR [sMR]). Although high procedural success of 91.3% was found, patients with primary MR (pMR) had a higher rate of procedural failure (sMR: 3.1%, pMR: 8.6%; p = 0.04). Five years after the MitraClip procedure, the majority of patients presented with reduced symptoms and improved functional capacity (functional NYHA class: p = 0.0001; 6 minutes walking test: p = 0.04). Sustained MR reduction (≤ grade 2) was found in 74% of patients, and right ventricular (RV) function was significantly increased (p = 0.03). Systolic pulmonary artery pressure (sPAP) was significantly reduced during follow-up only in sMR patients (p = 0.05, p = 0.3). Despite a pronounced clinical and echocardiographical amelioration and low interventional failure, 5-year mortality was significantly higher in patients with sMR (p = 0.05). The baseline level of creatinine (HR: 0.695), sPAP (HR: 0.96) and mean mitral valve gradient (MVG) (HR: 0.82) were found to be independent predictors for poor functional outcome and mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Transcatheter mitral valve repair with the MitraClip system showed low complication rates and sustained MR reduction with improved RV function and sPAP 5 years after the procedure was found in all patients, predominantly in patients with sMR. Despite pronounced functional amelioration with low procedure failure, sMR patients had higher 5-year mortality and worse outcomes. Baseline creatinine, MVG, and sPAP were found to be independent predictors of poor functional outcomes and 5-year mortality.