Introduction: Patients who need tricuspid valve replacement (TVR) surgery often have permanent transvalvular pacemaker (PM) leads, which pose an important challenge in lead management.
Aim: The objective of this study was to evaluate the results of paravalvular positioning of a permanent pacemaker lead during TVR surgery.
Material and methods: Between 2014 and 2024, a total of 15 patients who had previously had a transvenous pacemaker system underwent TVR. Relevant information, with a focus on pacemaker characteristics, was collected retrospectively.
Results: A total of 15 patients with PM lead previously implanted underwent TVR during the study period. The median time interval between pacemaker implantation and TVR was 8.5 years (5.7-10.5 years). The preoperative median threshold amplitude and impedance values were 1 V (0.68-1.25 V) and 518 Ω (377.5-598.7 Ω), whereas the postoperative median threshold amplitude and impedance values were 0.73 V (0.5-1 V) and 460 Ω (378.5-550). During the midterm follow-up, there were no mortalities or significant morbidities, and no patients required pacemaker lead revision.
Conclusions: We concluded that paravalvular positioning of the PM lead is an acceptable option during TVR surgery, since this technique enables better function of the prosthetic valve and pacemakers at mid-term follow-up.
Keywords: lead; pacemaker; paravalvular; regurgitation; tricuspid valve.
Copyright: © 2024 Polish Society of Cardiothoracic Surgeons (Polskie Towarzystwo KardioTorakochirurgów) and the editors of the Polish Journal of Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (Kardiochirurgia i Torakochirurgia Polska).