Transcatheter Intervention for Coarctation of the Aorta

Coarctation of the aorta (CoA), a congenital narrowing of the proximal descending thoracic aorta, is a relatively common form of congenital heart disease. Untreated significant CoA has a major impact on morbidity and mortality. In the past 3 decades, transcatheter intervention (TCI) for CoA has evolved as an alternative to surgery.The authors report on all TCIs for CoA performed from 2000 to 2016 in 4 countries covering 25 million inhabitants, with a mean follow-up duration of 6.9 years.During the study period, 683 interventions were performed on 542 patients.The procedural success rate was 88%, with 9% considered partly successful. Complications at the intervention site occurred in 3.5% of interventions and at the access site in 3.5%. There was no in-hospital mortality. During follow-up, TCI for CoA reduced the presence of hypertension significantly from 73% to 34%, but despite this, many patients remained hypertensive and in need of continuous antihypertensive treatment. Moreover, 8% to 9% of patients needed aortic and/or aortic valve surgery during follow-up.TCI for CoA can be performed with a low risk for complications. Lifetime follow-up after TCI for CoA seems warranted.