Clinical, sonographic characteristics and long-term prognosis of valvular heart disease in elderly patients

Background Valvular heart disease (VHD) is expected to become more prevail as the population ages and disproportionately affects older adults. However, direct comparison of clinical characteristics, sonographic diagnosis, and outcomes in VHD patients aged over 65 years is scarce. The objective of this study was to evaluate the differences in clinical characteristics and prognosis in two age-groups of geriatric patients with VHD. Methods We retrospectively enrolled consecutive individuals aged ≥ 65 years from Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital and screened for VHD using transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) or transesophageal echocardiography (TEE). Finally, 260 (48.9%) patients were in the 65–74 years group, and 272 (51.1%) were in the ≥ 75-year group. Factors that affected long-term survival was explored. A multivariable Cox hazards regression was performed to identify the predictors of major adverse cardiac events (MACEs) in each group. Results In our population, the older group were more likely to have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), degenerative VHD, but with less rheumatic VHD, aortic stenosis (AS) and mitral stenosis (MS). Compared with those aged 65–74 years, the older group had a higher incidence of all-cause death (10.0% vs. 16.5%, P = 0.027), ischemic stroke (13.5% vs. 20.2%, P = 0.038) and MACEs (37.3% vs. 48.2%, P = 0.011) at long-term follow-up. In multivariable Cox regression analysis, mitral regurgitation, a history of COPD, chronic kidney disease, diabetes, hypertension, atrial fibrillation and New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional class were identified as independent predictors of MACEs in the older group. Conclusion Advanced age profoundly affect prognosis and different predictors were associated with MACEs in geriatric patients with VHD.