Native Americans have comparable transcatheter aortic valve replacement outcomes but higher stroke and venous thromboembolism after surgical aortic valve replacement

Structural Heart Disease Interventions. Year in Review 2023-2024

In 2023-2024, there was a surge in research on structural heart disease. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the field for both general and interventional cardiologists, especially those with a keen interest in structural heart interventions. It summarizes the most important randomized controlled trials, meta-analyses, retrospective analyses, data registries, and noteworthy late-breaking studies unveiled at prominent cardiology conferences.

Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Peri-and Post-operative Cardiac Surgery

Purpose of Review

Despite efforts to curtail its impact on medical care, race remains a powerful risk factor for morbidity and mortality following cardiac surgery. While patients from racial and ethnic minority groups are underrepresented in cardiac surgery, they experience a disproportionally elevated number of adverse outcomes following various cardiac surgical procedures. This review provides a summary of existing literature highlighting disparities in coronary artery bypass surgery, valvular surgery, cardiac transplantation, and mechanical circulatory support.

Recent Findings

Unfortunately, specific causes of these disparities can be difficult to identify, even in large, multicenter studies, due to the complex relationship between race and post-operative outcomes. Current data suggest that these racial/ethnic disparities can be attributed to a combination of patient, socioeconomic, and hospital setting characteristics.

Summary

Proposed solutions to combat the mechanisms underlying the observed disparate outcomes require deployment of a multidisciplinary team of cardiologists, anesthesiologists, cardiac surgeons, and experts in health care equity and medical ethics. Successful identification of at-risk populations and the implementation of preventive measures are necessary first steps towards dismantling racial/ethnic differences in cardiac surgery outcomes.