Results of De Vega Annuloplasty and Tricuspid Ring Annuloplasty Using by Mitral Annuloplasty Ring in the Treatment of Functional Tricuspid Insufficiency

Objective: This study aimed to compare the medium-term results of patients with functional tricuspid insufficiency (FTI) treated with Tricuspid Ring Annuloplasty (TRA) and De Vega Annuloplasty (DVA). Material and Methods: With the approval of the Ethics Committee, 92 patients who were treated for FTI in our clinic between 2001-2008 were included in the study. Group I comprised 42 patients treated with TRA and Group II was included 50 patients treated with DVA. The mean follow-up period was 43.78+/-28.47 (6-86) months. Post-operative echocardiography findings (especially recurrent tricuspid insufficiency grades), duration of stay at the hospital and intensive care units, post-operative complications, New York Kalp Birligi (New York Heart Association-NYHA) classification and mortality data were compared between the groups. Results: No advanced (Grade 4) TI was encountered in medium-term follow-up in either of the groups. At the end of the mean follow-up period, 14.2% (n=6) of the patients in Group I had Grade 3 TI and 52.3% (n=22) had Grade 2 TI. In Group II, 20% (n=10) of the patients had Grade 3 TI and 56% (n=28) had Grade 2 TI. Although TI showed significant (p<0.01) post-operative improvement in both groups compared to the pre-operative data, no significant (p>0.05) difference was present between the two groups in terms of post-operative recurrent TI. Conclusion: In patients with functional tricuspid valve insufficiency operated for mitral and/or aortic valve pathologies, both DVA and TRA provided significant improvement in tricuspid insufficiency.