Trends in Transcatheter Versus Surgical Aortic Valve Replacement Outcomes in Patients With Low-Surgical Risk: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Trials

Background: Limited data exist on long-term outcomes after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) and surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR). This meta-analysis aims to elucidate outcome trends following TAVR versus SAVR in patients with severe aortic stenosis and low-surgical risk. Methods and Results: A systematic search was conducted in PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and the Cochrane Library databases from inception until May 2024, to identify studies comparing TAVR versus SAVR in patients with low-surgical risk (Society of Thoracic Surgeons predicted risk of mortality score <4%). The primary outcome was all-cause mortality. Secondary outcomes included cardiovascular mortality, stroke, disabling stroke, rehospitalization, myocardial infarction, aortic valve reintervention, permanent pacemaker implantation, and new-onset atrial fibrillation. Binary random-effects models were used to compare the risk of each outcome across various follow-up intervals and the risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane Collaboration's Risk of Bias-2 tool. The meta-analysis included 6 randomized trials including 4682 patients. TAVR was associated with a lower risk of all-cause mortality than SAVR in the 30-day (hazard ratio [HR: 0.45] [95% CI: 0.26-0.77], I-2: 0%) and 30-day to 1-year (HR: 0.55 [95% CI: 0.37-0.81], I-2: 16%) follow-ups. However, the risk of all-cause mortality was similar during >1-year follow-ups. TAVR was associated with a significantly lower risk of cardiovascular mortality, disabling stroke, rehospitalization, new-onset atrial fibrillation, and a higher risk of permanent pacemaker implantation compared with SAVR during the 30-day follow-up. Conclusions: TAVR was associated with a lower risk of all-cause mortality within the first year of post-procedural follow-up compared with SAVR. However, the risk of all-cause mortality was similar in >1-year follow-ups.