Sex Differences and Survival in Adults With Bicuspid Aortic Valves: Verification in 3 Contemporary Echocardiographic Cohorts

BACKGROUND: Sex-related differences in morbidity and survival in bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) adults are fundamentally unknown. Contemporary studies portend excellent survival for BAV patients identified at early echocardiographic-clinical stages. Whether BAV adults incur a survival disadvantage throughout subsequent echocardiographic-clinical stages remains undetermined. METHODS AND RESULTS: Analysis was done of 3 different cohorts of consecutive patients with echocardiographic diagnosis of BAV identified retrospectively: (1) a community cohort of 416 patients with first BAV diagnosis (age 35±21 years, follow-up 16±7 years), (2) a tertiary clinical referral cohort of 2824 BAV adults (age 51±16 years, follow-up 9±6 years), and (3) a surgical referral cohort of 2242 BAV adults referred for aortic valve replacement (AVR) (age 62±14 years, follow-up 6±5 years). For the community cohort, 20-year risks of aortic regurgitation (AR), AVR, and infective endocarditis were higher in men (all P≤0.04); for a total BAV-related morbidity risk of 52±4% vs 35±6% in women (P=0.01). The cohort's 25-year survival was identical to that in the general population (P=0.98). AR independently predicted mortality in women (P=0.001). Baseline AR was more common in men (P≤0.02) in the tertiary cohort, with 20-year survival lower than that in the general population (P<0.0001); age-adjusted relative death risk was 1.16 (95% confidence interval CI 1.05-1.29) for men versus 1.67 (95% CI 1.38-2.03) for women (P=0.001). AR independently predicted mortality in women (P=0.01). Baseline AR and infective endocarditis were higher in men (both ≤0.001) for the surgical referral cohort, with 15-year survival lower than that in the general population (P<0.0001); age-adjusted relative death risk was 1.34 (95% CI 1.22-1.47) for men versus 1.63 (95% CI 1.40-1.89) for women (P=0.026). AR and NYHA class independently predicted mortality in women (both P≤0.04). CONCLUSIONS: Within evolving echocardiographic-clinical stages, the long-term survival of adults with BAV is not benign, as both men and women incur excess mortality. Although BAV-related morbidity is higher in men in the community, and AR and infective endocarditis are more prevalent in men, women exhibit a significantly higher relative risk of death in tertiary and surgical referral cohorts, which is independently associated with AR.