The cardioband system: utilisation and treatment trends in Germany based on national in-hospital data
C Caspari, J Voran, D FrankAbstract
Background
The Cardioband System enables direct annuloplasty as a minimally invasive technique to reduce the annular diameter and tricuspid regurgitation.
Purpose
The aim of this study was to analyse the patterns in the utilisation of the Cardioband System in Germany and compare them to the use of TEER.
Methods
The data used in this study were derived from the Diagnosis Related Groups (DRG) statistics (2021-2023) and accessed through the Research Data Center of the Federal Statistical Office of Germany. All German in-hospital cases coded for transvenous tricuspid annuloplasty were retrospectively analysed and compared with patients treated by TEER of the tricuspid valve.
Results
In Germany, 697 patients underwent the Cardioband procedure; 64.1% were female. Patients treated by TEER were also predominantly female, at a rate of 58.7%, in a total of 9,274. In both treatment groups, most patients were between 80 and 85 years old, representing 267 (38.3%) in the Cardioband group and 3,618 (39.0%) in the TEER group. No differences were observed in mortality rates (1.7% vs 1.7%). However, Cardioband patients subsequently received more intensive care: 23.5% compared to 17.6% treated by TEER. The use of the Cardioband device was highest in Berlin (2.4 per 100,000) and North Rhine-Westphalia (1.7 per 100,000), while TEER procedures were most frequent in Hamburg (30.8 per 100,000) and Thuringia (21 per 100,000). In 2023, a total of 40 hospitals performed Cardioband procedures, 37 of which treated fewer than 12 patients during that year. In contrast, TEER interventions were carried out in 174 hospitals, ranging from 1–12 procedures in 75 centres to more than 52 in 16 centres.
Conclusions
Significant differences in baseline characteristics and in-hospital outcomes were observed between patients undergoing Cardioband and TEER procedures for tricuspid valve repair, which may provide a better understanding of the target group of the Cardioband procedure. In addition, differences were found in the utilisation across the federal states of Germany and in the number of centres performing the procedures.