Tricuspid Valve Academic Research Consortium Definitions for Tricuspid Regurgitation and Trial Endpoints.

Interest in the pathophysiology, etiology, management, and outcomes of patients with tricuspid regurgitation (TR) has grown in the wake of multiple natural history studies showing progressively worse outcomes associated with increasing TR severity, even after adjusting for multiple comorbidities. Historically, isolated tricuspid valve surgery has been associated with high in-hospital mortality rates, leading to the development of transcatheter treatment options. The aim of this first Tricuspid Valve Academic Research Consortium document is to standardize definitions of disease etiology and severity, as well as endpoints for trials that aim to address the gaps in our knowledge related to identification and management of patients with TR. Standardizing endpoints for trials should provide consistency and enable meaningful comparisons between clinical trials. A second Tricuspid Valve Academic Research Consortium document will focus on further defining trial endpoints and will discuss trial design options. [Display omitted] • There is an independent relationship between increasing TR and worse outcomes, but gaps exist in understanding of pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment. • Refinement of classification categories, novel methods for assessing and grading TR, and better selection of outcome measures should inform the design of clinical trials. • This document provides recommendations for classification of disease etiology, standardized definitions and methods to assess disease severity, and trial endpoints. • Transcatheter alternatives to surgical intervention are under investigation; yet, more work is needed to define patient selection criteria, goals of therapy, and clinical outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]