Ambulatory Electrocardiographic Monitoring Following Minimalist Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the impact of delayed high-degree atrioventricular block (HAVB) or complete heart block (CHB) after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) using a minimalist approach followed by ambulatory electrocardiographic (AECG) monitoring.

Background: Little is known regarding the clinical impact of HAVB or CHB in the early period after discharge following TAVR.

Methods: A prospective, multicenter study was conducted, including 459 consecutive TAVR patients without permanent pacemaker who underwent continuous AECG monitoring for 14 days (median length of hospital stay 2 days; IQR: 1-3 days), using 2 devices (CardioSTAT and Zio AT). The primary endpoint was the occurrence of HAVB or CHB. Patients were divided into 3 groups: 1) no right bundle branch block (RBBB) and no electrocardiographic (ECG) changes; 2) baseline RBBB with no further changes; and 3) new-onset ECG conduction disturbances.

Results: Delayed HAVB or CHB episodes occurred in 21 patients (4.6%) (median 5 days postprocedure; IQR: 4-6 days), leading to PPM in 17 (81.0%). HAVB or CHB events were rare in group 1 (7 of 315 [2.2%]), and the incidence increased in group 2 (5 of 38 [13.2%]; P < 0.001 vs group 1) and group 3 (9 of 106 [8.5%]; P = 0.007 vs group 1; P = 0.523 vs group 2). No episodes of sudden or all-cause death occurred at 30-day follow-up.

Conclusions: Systematic 2-week AECG monitoring following minimalist TAVR detected HAVB and CHB episodes in about 5% of cases, with no mortality at 1 month. Whereas HAVB or CHB was rare in patients without ECG changes post-TAVR, baseline RBBB and new-onset conduction disturbances determined an increased risk. These results would support tailored management using AECG monitoring and the possibility of longer hospitalization periods in patients at higher risk for delayed HAVB or CHB.