In Vitro Hemodynamic Evaluation of Right Ventricle-Pulmonary Artery Continuity Reconstruction Through a Trileaflet Expanded Polytetrafluoroethylene Valved Conduit

Percutaneous pulmonary valve implantation is a technique to treat narrowed pulmonary valves or leaky pulmonary valves in congenital heart disease. This technique provides a promising strategy to reduce surgical risk. In clinical cases, due to stent size restrictions, commercial valve stents are sometimes unsuitable for children or certain patients. Hence, handmade pulmonary valved conduits prove useful because a customized size can be obtained for valve replacement. We propose a meta-learning-based intelligent model to train an estimator (including two sub-estimators) to determine optimal trileaflet parameters for customized trileaflet valve reconstruction. The purpose of this study was to investigate the hemodynamic and functional consequences of the novel design by employing a mock circulation system. We recorded the diastolic valve leakage and calculated the pulmonary regurgitation, regurgitation fraction, and ejection efficiency in a pulsatile setting. The prosthetic leaflet behavior was assessed using an endoscope camera and the pressure drops through valves were measured. All the in vitro parameters indicated that the expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE) valved conduits were not inferior to commercial mechanical or tissue valve conduits and could decrease the regurgitation volume and increase the efficiency. Compatible early clinical outcomes were also identified between ePTFE valved conduits and other valved conduits used for right ventricular outflow tract reconstruction. The ePTFE valved conduits could be implanted in relatively small patients. An in vitro experimental study provided evidence that a handmade ePTFE valved conduit could be an attractive alternative to other commercialized valved conduits used for right ventricle-pulmonary artery continuity reconstruction.