Published online Aug 23, 2015. doi: 10.5494/wjh.v5.i3.107
Peer-review started: December 4, 2014
First decision: February 7, 2015
Revised: April 29, 2015
Accepted: May 16, 2015
Article in press: May 18, 2015
Published online: August 23, 2015
Processing time: 267 Days and 7.3 Hours
Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) has been shown in improve outcome of severe aortic stenosis (AS) patients, deemed surgical high-risk or inoperable, and has grown popular in the past decade. The procedure requires accurate prior planning, and demands an integration of a “Heart Team” consisted from cardiac surgeons, interventional cardiologists, and imaging experts. The role of cardiac imaging and especially multi-slice computerized tomography (MSCT) has been a mainstay of pre-evaluation of severe AS patients that allows to accurately depict and size the cardiac and vascular structures, and has become the primary tool for procedural planning. This article is aimed to evaluate current uses of MSCT in severe AS patients undergoing TAVI, delineate the various measurements derived from this modality and review current literature regarding it’s advantages over other techniques.
Core tip: Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) has been shown in improve outcome of severe aortic stenosis patients, deemed surgical high-risk or inoperable, and has grown popular in the past decade. The procedure requires accurate prior planning, and demands an integration of a “Heart Team” approach consisted from cardiac surgeons, interventional cardiologists, and imaging experts. The role of cardiac imaging and especially multi-slice computerized tomography (MSCT) has been a mainstay of TAVI evaluation, and allows accurate depiction and sizing of the cardiac and vascular structures. This article is aimed to review current use of MSCT in TAVI patients.