Stroke outcomes following durable left ventricular assist device implant in patients bridged with micro‐axial flow pump: Insights from a large registry

Gallone, Guglielmo, Lewin, Daniel,; Rojas&nbsp;,; Sebastian, Hernandez,,; Alexander, Bernhardt,,; Michael, Billion,,; Anna, Meyer,,; Ivan, Netuka,,; J‐j, Kooij,,; Pieri, Marina Laura Grazia; K. , Szymanski, Mariusz,; H. , Moeller, Christian,; Payam, Akhyari,,; Khalil, Jawad,,; Ihor, Krasivskyi,,; Bastian, Schmack,,; Gloria, Färber,,; Marta, Medina,,; Assad, Haneya,,; Daniel, Zimpfer,,; Gaik, Nersesian,,; Pia, Lanmueller,,; Antonio, Spitaleri,,; Mehmet, Oezkur,,; Ilija, Djordjevic,,; Diyar, Saeed,,; Massimo, Boffini,,; Julia, Stein,,; F. , Gustafsson,,; Mara, Scandroglio, Anna,; De&nbsp;,; Maria, Ferrari, Gaetano,; Bart, Meyns,,; Steffen, Hofmann,,; Jan, Belohlavek,,; Jan, Gummert,,; Mauro, Rinaldi,,; V. , Potapov, Evgenij,; Antonio, Loforte,,

doi:10.1111/aor.14775

Background: Stroke after durable left ventricular assist device (d-LVAD) implantation portends high mortality. The incidence of ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke and the impact on stroke outcomes of temporary mechanical circulatory support (tMCS) management among patients requiring bridge to d-LVAD with micro-axial flow-pump (mAFP, Abiomed) is unsettled. Methods: Consecutive patients, who underwent d-LVAD implantation after being bridged with mAFP at 19 institutions, were retrospectively included. The incidence of early ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke after d-LVAD implantation (<60 days) and association of pre-d-LVAD characteristics and peri-procedural management with a specific focus on tMCS strategies were studied. Results: Among 341 patients, who underwent d-LVAD implantation after mAFP implantation (male gender 83.6%, age 58 [48-65] years, mAFP 5.0/5.5 72.4%), the early ischemic stroke incidence was 10.8% and early hemorrhagic stroke 2.9%. The tMCS characteristics (type of mAFP device and access, support duration, upgrade from intra-aortic balloon pump, ECMELLA, ECMELLA at d-LVAD implantation, hemolysis, and bleeding) were not associated with ischemic stroke after d-LVAD implant. Conversely, the device model (mAFP 2.5/CP vs. mAFP 5.0/5.5: HR 5.6, 95%CI 1.4-22.7, p = 0.015), hemolysis on mAFP support (HR 10.5, 95% CI 1.3-85.3, p = 0.028) and ECMELLA at d-LVAD implantation (HR 5.0, 95% CI 1.4-18.7, p = 0.016) were associated with increased risk of hemorrhagic stroke after d-LVAD implantation. Both early ischemic (HR 2.7, 95% CI 1.9-4.5, p < 0.001) and hemorrhagic (HR 3.43, 95% CI 1.49-7.88, p = 0.004) stroke were associated with increased 1-year mortality. Conclusions: Among patients undergoing d-LVAD implantation following mAFP support, tMCS characteristics do not impact ischemic stroke occurrence, while several factors are associated with hemorrhagic stroke suggesting a proactive treatment target to reduce this complication.

Stroke outcomes following durable left ventricular assist device implant in patients bridged with micro‐axial flow pump: Insights from a large registry / Gallone, Guglielmo, Lewin, Daniel, ; Rojas , ; Sebastian, Hernandez,, ; Alexander, Bernhardt,, ; Michael, Billion,, ; Anna, Meyer,, ; Ivan, Netuka,, ; J‐j, Kooij,, ; Pieri, Marina Laura Grazia; K. , Szymanski, Mariusz, ; H. , Moeller, Christian, ; Payam, Akhyari,, ; Khalil, Jawad,, ; Ihor, Krasivskyi,, ; Bastian, Schmack,, ; Gloria, Färber,, ; Marta, Medina,, ; Assad, Haneya,, ; Daniel, Zimpfer,, ; Gaik, Nersesian,, ; Pia, Lanmueller,, ; Antonio, Spitaleri,, ; Mehmet, Oezkur,, ; Ilija, Djordjevic,, ; Diyar, Saeed,, ; Massimo, Boffini,, ; Julia, Stein,, ; F. , Gustafsson,, ; Mara, Scandroglio, Anna, ; De , ; Maria, Ferrari, Gaetano, ; Bart, Meyns,, ; Steffen, Hofmann,, ; Jan, Belohlavek,, ; Jan, Gummert,, ; Mauro, Rinaldi,, ; V. , Potapov, Evgenij, ; Antonio, Loforte,,. - In: ARTIFICIAL ORGANS. - ISSN 0160-564X. - 48:10(2024), pp. 1168-1179. [10.1111/aor.14775]