Robotic Totally Endoscopic Tricuspid Valve Surgery: Early Results and Midterm Outcomes.

Abstract

Objective: Although robotic cardiac surgery is becoming more widely adopted for mitral valve procedures, robot-assisted tricuspid valve (TV) surgery is less common. We describe clinical and echocardiographic outcomes for 70 isolated and concomitant TV repair (TVr) cases.

Methods: Patients who underwent robotic totally endoscopic TV surgery at our institution were retrospectively reviewed. The da Vinci Si or Xi robot (Intuitive Surgical, Sunnyvale, CA, USA) was used for all cases, employing an 8 to 10 mm working port and using cardiopulmonary bypass on a beating heart. Early and midterm outcomes were reviewed, along with echocardiogram results when available.

Results: Between 2014 and 2024, 70 patients underwent TVr. Fourteen cases were isolated TV procedures and 56 were concomitant with mitral surgery. The mean patient age was 67 ± 14.4 years, 57% were female, and 11 patients (16%) had previous heart surgery. TVr with an annuloplasty band occurred in 97% of patients, 1 patient had a tissue valve replacement, and there were no conversions to sternotomy. Early mortality occurred in 1 patient (1.4%) with an observed to expected ratio of 0.4. Early postoperative echocardiography revealed none to mild residual tricuspid regurgitation (TR) in 65 patients (93%). Clinical follow-up was completed in 97% of patients. All-cause mortality occurred in 14 patients (20%), 11 of which were noncardiac, including cancer, gastrointestinal bleed, end-stage renal disease, SARS-CoV-2 infection, and drug overdose. Follow-up echocardiography results were available for 46 patients (66%) at a mean of 45 months, showing moderate or more recurrent TR in 6 patients (9%).

Conclusions: Robot-assisted totally endoscopic TV surgery, for both isolated and concomitant TV disease, is a safe and effective approach. The sternal-sparing nature allows for rapid recovery and positive midterm outcomes.