TAVR valve’s spontaneous leaflet rupture highlights importance of long-term follow-up

Cardiologists in Spain encountered an unexpected complication in a 78-year-old transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) patient, highlighting the experience in JACC: Cardiovascular Interventions.

Image and captions courtesy of Vila-García et al. and JACC: Cardiovascular Interventions. (A) Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE), midesophageal short-axis view. The arrow indicates the tear in the noncoronary leaflet. (B) TEE, midesophageal long-axis view with zoom at the TAVR. The arrow indicates the tear in the leaflet in diastole. (C) TEE, midesophageal long-axis view with zoom at the aortic valve. The arrow indicates the tear in the leaflet in systole. (D) TEE, midesophageal long-axis view. The wide color jet suggests severe aortic regurgitation.

Cardiologists believe this is the first time this exact complication has been reported. Even patients who present with no known risk factors, they said, should receive regular follow-up care to ensure such incidents do not go untreated.