Long-term function of a novel autologous transcatheter pulmonary heart valve implant in an adult animal model

BackgroundCurrent heart valve implants entail major disadvantages in the treatment for younger patients or those with congenital heart defects.AimEvaluation of novel transcatheter pulmonary valve implant made from autologous pericardium with natural crosslinking agent in an in vitro setup and in vivo animal modelMethodsValves were tested in a pulse duplicator according to ISO-standard 5840. For in vivo studies computer tomography was performed to measure sheep's native pulmonary valve dimensions. Pericardium was harvested by thoracotomy, personalized implants were manufactured and deployed in pulmonary valve position of the same sheep. Every 3 months implant functionality was evaluated by intracardiac echocardiography, intracardiac pressure measurements and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (cMRI). Implants were explanted for macroscopic and histological examination.ResultsIn vitro experiments showed compliance with regulatory requirements in terms of valve opening and insufficiency. Five sheep successfully received an autologous valve implant. Two animals had to be euthanized due to trauma sustained in the stable. Long-term valve function was excellent in three out of four animals with median implant cMRI regurgitation fraction of 9% (n = 4) at 3 months, 8% (n = 3) at 6, 8% (n = 3) at 9, 12% (n = 3) at 13, 8% (n = 2) at 17% and 8% (n = 2) at 20.5 months after implantation. Despite good adherence to neighboring tissue and endothelization, histological assessment revealed some signs of degeneration.ConclusionTranscatheter pulmonary valve implants showed promising function for up to 20.5 months encouraging research to further improve this approach.