Transcatheter Pulmonary-Valve Implantation

Results with the Melody device were promising.

Conduits from the right ventricle (RV) to the pulmonary artery (PA), bypassing the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT), are used to help repair many congenital heart defects. RVOT conduit dysfunction due to pulmonary-valve stenosis or regurgitation often necessitates multiple interventions and can cause morbidity and death.

Investigators now report outcomes for 34 patients (mean age, 19 years) with RVOT conduit dysfunction who received the Melody transcatheter pulmonary valve, which was recently recommended for approval by an FDA advisory panel, at one of three U.S. children's hospitals. Several of the investigators had financial ties with the device manufacturer.

At baseline, patients' mean conduit gradient was 28 mm Hg; 94% had moderate …

Reviewing Author

Howard C. Herrmann, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardAffluent Medical; Artedrone; Caranx; Johnson & Johnson; Medtronic; Prolifagen; Wells Fargo

EquityMicrointerventional Devices, Inc.

RoyaltiesUniversity of Pennsylvania

Grant/Research SupportAbbott Vascular; Edwards Lifesciences; Johnson & Johnson; Medtronic

Editorial BoardsCatheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions; Journal of the American College of Cardiology; Circulation: Cardiovascular Interventions; JACC Cardiovascular Interventions; JACC Case Reports; JSCAI