Investigator Initiated Multicenter Study to Evaluate the Feasibility, Safety and Effectiveness of the ACURATE neo2 Transcatheter Heart Valve for Severe Bicuspid Aortic Stenosis - The Neo2 BAV Registry

As the use of TAVI in BAV anatomy expands, it is important to systematically evaluate clinical outcomes from various THV technologies among BAV patients. It is essential to consider short-, and longer-term events among patients with BAV undergoing TAVI. Short-term outcomes of interest include THV embolization, PVL, residual transvalvular gradients and patient prosthesis mismatch, aortic root rupture, the requirement for new PPI, and stroke. Longer-term term clinical events of interest include quality of life, THV durability, freedom from reintervention, maintained coronary access, the possibility of redo-TAVI, and mortality.

The ACURATE neo2 THV has design features that make it possible to successfully treat severe BAV stenosis and yield optimal short- and longer-term outcomes. A new active sealing skirt is designed to minimize residual PVL; this is especially relevant given the presence of severe calcifications in BAV. The supra-annular leaflet position is also likely to provide excellent haemodynamics and durability since they sit above the heavily calcified native valve leaflet calcification. The upper crown and stabilizing arches and the top-down deployment of the ACURATE neo2 should reduce the risk of device embolization. It is unclear however if the self-expanding frame of the neo2 has the optimal radial force to treat patients with severe calcification.

The plan is to collect systematic clinical, procedural, and imaging data on a large series of patients with severe symptomatic BAV stenosis who underwent TAVI using the ACURATE neo2 THV. This information will show if the ACURATE neo2 is suitable to treat BAV morphology and determine if there are specific BAV subtypes that are more suitable for alternative treatment strategies. It is also envisaged that this study will inform the procedural execution of ACURATE neo2 THV in BAV morphology and inform future iteration design of the ACURATE neo THV series.

All imaging data (Echocardiography, angiography, aortography and MSCT) will be meticulously analyzed in an independent imaging Core Lab (CORRIB Core Lab, University of Galway, Galway, Ireland).

The in-depth imaging analysis will allow the identification of patients that are suitable for TAVI using the ACURATE neo2 system and highlight patient or procedural features that render TAVI at elevated risk of adverse outcomes. Furthermore, a mechanistic understanding of the device-host interaction will be examined on post-TAVI multislice computed tomography (MSCT) and other available post-TAVI imaging studies.