Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Several clinical trials have demonstrated the non-inferiority of transcatheter aortic valve replacement compared with surgical aortic valve replacement in patients with severe aortic stenosis and low to intermediate surgical risk. However, mid-term results are still contentious. We performed this meta-analysis to compare the safety and efficacy of transcatheter vs. surgical aortic valve replacement in the mid-term in patients with aortic stenosis at low to moderate surgical risk. METHODS: We searched Embase, PubMed®, and Cochrane databases for randomized clinical trials that compared transcatheter with surgical aortic valve replacement in patients with symptomatic severe aortic stenosis with a follow-up of at least four years. Outcomes of interest were all-cause mortality and disabling stroke. RESULTS: We included six randomized clinical trials encompassing 6,444 patients with severe aortic stenosis, of whom 3,282 (50.9%) underwent transcatheter aortic valve replacement. There was no difference in all-cause mortality (risk ratio [RR] 1.08; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.94 - 1.25; P = 0.30) and disabling stroke (RR 0.95; 95% CI 0.75 - 1.21; P = 0.67) between groups. In the subgroup analysis, five-year mortality (RR 1.28; 95% CI 1.10 - 1.49) was higher in the transcatheter group. The new pacemaker implantation (RR 2.22; 95% CI 1.42 - 3.45) rate was higher in the transcatheter group. However, the new atrial fibrillation (RR 0.40; 95% CI 0.31 - 0.52) rate was higher in the surgical group. CONCLUSION: Mid-term mortality and disabling stroke rates in patients with severe aortic stenosis treated with either transcatheter or surgical aortic valve replacement were similar.