Transcatheter mitral valve replacement in mitral annulus calcification - “The art of computer simulation”

There is considerable interest in transcatheter prosthetic valve treatment for mitral valve disease in high-risk individuals. Although the presence of mitral annular calcium (MAC) may provide an anchoring zone for such devices, results to date have been modest with reported technical failure rates approaching 30% in specialist centers. This in part relates to the risk of left ventricular outflow tract obstruction and device dislodgment but also to the lack of specific imaging guidelines to plan for such procedures. We present the use of finite element analysis and computer simulation based on cardiac CT in three patients with severe MAC in whom transcatheter devices were considered. In the first two cases, the computer simulations were performed after the clinical procedure and were concordant with the clinical outcome. For the third case, computer simulation was performed prior to the clinical procedure. This indicated unsuitability for transcatheter device deployment and a subsequent medical management was adopted. Overall, our initial results suggest that computer simulation may have the potential to improve patient selection for transcatheter mitral valve replacement in the presence of significant MAC.