The Polish Interventional Cardiology TAVI Survey (PICTS): 10 years of transcatheter aortic valve implantation in Poland. The landscape after the first stage of the Valve for Life Initiative.

Abstract

Few studies assessed thedevelopment of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) in Poland since its introduction in2008. Effects of theValve for Life Initiative in thecountry have not been reported. Theaim of thestudy was to investigate TAVI adoption and practice in Poland in theyears 2008 to2019. ThePolish Interventional Cardiology TAVI Survey (PICTS) analyzed reports of TAVI activity in all 23 TAVI centers. It consisted of 94 questions and encompassed thefollowing topics: 1) characteristics of centers; 2) theannual number of TAVI procedures in theyears 2008 to 2019; 3) pre-, intra-, and postprocedural management of patients; and 4) alist of TAVI team members. It was obligatory to answer all questions. Theregistry survey was published online. Since 2008, 102 certified operators have performed atotal of 6910 procedures. In 2019, theannual number of TAVI reached 1550 (40.38 implants per 1000000 inhabitants). Among patients aged65 years and older, TAVI penetration rate was 18.65% in2019. Inoperable and high-risk patients were treated in all centers, while 18 also treated medium- and 5 treated low-risk individuals. Therate of transfemoral implantations increased to 93.5% of all procedures. Thesurvey highlighted aslow increase in therate of TAVI adoption in Poland. We found asignificant treatment gap in patients with severe aortic stenosis. Remarkable regional variations in TAVI experience exist among Polish TAVI centers. Further multinational cooperation is warranted to tackle theidentified limitations in access to this life-saving procedure.