The Safety of Early Discharge Following Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation Among Patients in Northern Ontario and Rural Areas Utilizing the Vancouver 3M TAVI Study Clinical Pathway

BACKGROUND: Early hospital ( < 48 hours) discharge following transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is an increasingly adopted practice; however, data on the safety of such an approach among patients residing in North Ontario, including remote and medically underserved areas, are lacking. METHODS: This retrospective study included patients who underwent TAVI in Sudbury, Ontario. The safety of early discharge after implementation of the Vancouver 3M (multidisciplinary, multimodality, but minimalist) clinical pathway was assessed. The primary endpoint was 30-day mortality. Resource utilization before vs after 3M clinical pathway implementation was also compared. RESULTS: A total of 291 patients who underwent TAVI between 2012 and 2021 were included in the study. One in-hospital death (0.6%) occurred after the 3M clinical pathway implementation, with no mortality observed beyond hospital discharge. Eleven patients (6.7%) required rehospitalization within 30 days. The need for mechanical ventilation and surgical vascular cut-down declined from 100% and 97%, respectively, at baseline, to 6% and 2%. The number of patients receiving TAVI on a given procedural day increased from 2 to 3 patients. The median post-TAVI hospital length of stay decreased from 5 days (2-6 days) to 1 day (1-3 days) after 3M clinical pathway implementation. CONCLUSIONS: Following TAVI, early discharge of selected patients residing in Northern Ontario, including rural areas, using the Vancouver 3M clinical pathway was associated with favourable outcomes, short length of stay, and more-efficient resource utilization. These data can help improve healthcare efficiency and bridge variations in TAVI funding and accessibility in underserved locations.