Results of Transcatheter Therapy with Balloon Versus Stent for Treating Isolated Branch Pulmonary Artery Stenosis in Children and Adolescents: A Midterm Study

Branch pulmonary artery stenosis presents as either an isolated disease or in association with congenital heart diseases (in 2 - 3% of cases). Balloon angioplasty (BA) and stent implantation (SI) are two percutaneous methods that are commonly used to treat this condition. We compared the outcomes of these 2 methods in children and adolescents with isolated branch pulmonary artery stenosis.

Pediatric patients with severe branch pulmonary artery stenosis who were referred to our center and underwent transcatheter insertion via either BA or SI between 2010 and 2019 were studied. Patients’ demographic data, including age, gender, and body weight, were recorded. Standard procedures for BA and SI were applied. Post-procedure angiography and echocardiographic parameters were determined and compared between the 2 groups. Patients who were followed up for at least 2 years were selected for this study, and comparative evaluations were performed during the follow-up.

Forty patients with a median age of 2.1 years and a median weight of 10 kg were enrolled in the study, of whom 25 and 15 underwent BA and SI, respectively. The trans-stenotic pulmonary artery pressure gradient significantly reduced immediately after both procedures, but there was no significant difference between the BA and SI groups in terms of pulmonary artery pressure gradient early after the procedures (P-value = 0.014). There was a significant decline in the peak right ventricular pressure after both procedures. Restenosis occurred more frequently in the BA group. In the BA group, patients under one year old and weight lower than 10 kg had a lower restenosis recurrence rate, evidenced by echocardiographic measurements, compared to those with a weight over 10 kg. Three patients (12%) in the BA group needed balloon reinsertion.

Immediate therapeutic success was similar between BA and SI in patients with branch pulmonary artery stenosis. Re-stenosis occurred more often in the BA group; however, the chance of re-stenosis was lower among patients weighing less than 10 kg over a 2-year follow-up.