Impact of Discharge Location After Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement on 1-Year Outcomes in Women: Results From the WIN-TAVI Registry

Background Several clinical and procedural factors determine outcomes after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), but data are scarce on the impact of post-TAVR discharge disposition on long-term outcomes. We sought to analyse whether discharge location after TAVR is associated with 1-year outcomes in women undergoing contemporary TAVR. Methods The Women’s INternational Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation (WIN-TAVI) registry is the first all-female TAVR registry to study the safety and performance of contemporary TAVR in women (n = 1019). Information on discharge location was available in 817 patients (80.2%). We compared women discharged home vs those discharged to another location (nursing home, rehabilitation, or other hospital). One-year outcomes were adjusted using multivariable Cox regression methods with discharge home as the reference group. Results Of the study subjects, 75.2% (n = 614) were discharged home and 24.8% (n = 203) to another location. Women discharged to other locations were older with a greater prevalence of severe lung disease requiring home oxygen and renal failure on dialysis but were less frequently considered frail or at high surgical risk compared with women discharged home. After multivariable adjustment, non-home discharge was associated with greater hazard for 1-year Valve Academic Research Consortium 2 efficacy (21.3% vs 10.8%, hazards ratio [HR] 1.9, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.2-2.9) and safety endpoints (31.5% vs 15.2%, HR 2.1, 95% CI 1.5-3.0), cardiovascular death (12.7% vs 5.5%, HR 2.0, 95% CI 1.1-3.6), and stroke (6.5% vs 0.8%, HR 8.5, 95% CI 2.9-25.6). Conclusions In women undergoing contemporary TAVR, discharge disposition significantly affects 1-year risk of outcomes even after adjustment for recorded baseline differences. This might suggest the necessity of considering additional factors beyond comorbidities in the TAVR decision-making process.