Long-term outcomes after atrial septal defect transcatheter closure by age and against population controls

Objectives — The long-term outcomes after transcatheter closure of atrial septal defects (ASD) in adults are reported and compared between age groups and against population control patients.

Background — ASD is the second most common lesion in congenital heart disease. Comprehensive data on long-term outcomes after ASD closure are limited.

Methods — This retrospective cohort study enrolled adult patients with secundum ASD closure between 1998 and 2016. Information from a detailed clinical registry was linked to population-based administrative databases to capture outcomes. The population control cohort was matched using important prognostic characteristics.

Results — The cohort included 1,390 ASD patients of whom 32% were <40 years of age, 45% were 40 to 60 years of age, and 23% were >60 years of age at closure. The median follow-up was 10.6 years (interquartile range: 6.2 to 14.0 years). New-onset atrial fibrillation (AF) was the most frequent outcome overall (14.9%). The incidence of adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events was higher in the >60 years of age group than in the younger groups. In adjusted analysis, patients >60 years of age continued exhibiting higher risk of all-cause (hazard ratio [HR]: 8.54; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 93.40 to 21.43) and cardiovascular (CV)-specific mortality compared with the <40 years of age group. The risk of new-onset AF (HR: 3.73; 95% CI: 2.79 to 4.98) and any AF hospitalization (HR: 1.55; 95% CI: 1.28 to 1.89) was higher in the ASD than in the control population, whereas there was no difference in all-cause and CV-specific mortality.

Conclusions — As expected, rates of adverse events post-ASD closure are higher in older age groups, but long-term mortality was comparable to that of a population control cohort. The high rates of AF necessitate future investigations.