Patient characteristics, comorbid conditions and echocardiographic indices
| Severe AS (n=108) | Very severe AS (n=58) | p Value | |
| Age, years, mean±SD | 70±11 | 70±11 | 0.88 |
| Female, n (%) | 65 (60) | 31 (53) | 0.40 |
| Symptoms, n (%) | 52 (48) | 38 (66) | 0.03 |
| Chest pain | 7 (6) | 7 (12) | 0.23 |
| Syncope | 3 (3) | 3 (5) | 0.44 |
| NYHA ≥3 | 3 (3) | 5 (9) | 0.10 |
| Comorbidities | |||
| Atrial fibrillation, n (%) | 23 (21) | 8 (14) | 0.23 |
| Ischaemic heart disease, n (%) | 22 (20) | 9 (16) | 0.44 |
| Previous cerebral infarction, n (%) | 13 (12) | 3 (5) | 0.13 |
| Chronic kidney disease, n (%) | 48 (44) | 28 (48) | 0.64 |
| Haemodialysis, n (%) | 3 (3) | 1 (2) | 0.66 |
| Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, n (%) | 5 (5) | 1 (2) | 0.31 |
| Logistic EuroSCORE | 8.5±7.9 | 7.1±6.0 | 0.25 |
| STS risk score | 2.5±2.1 | 3.0±2.4 | 0.22 |
| Echocardiographic indices | |||
| LVEF, % | 65±8 | 65±8 | 0.68 |
| Left ventricular end-diastolic dimension, mm | 44±6 | 44±6 | 0.91 |
| Left ventricular end-systolic dimension, mm | 26±6 | 26±6 | 0.85 |
| Aotic valve area, cm2 | 0.89±0.13 | 0.63±0.20 | <0.001 |
| Aortic jet velocity, m/s | 3.8±0.5 | 5.0±0.8 | <0.001 |
| Aortic valve area index, cm2/m2 | 0.60±0.10 | 0.42±0.12 | <0.001 |
| Mean aortic gradient, mm Hg | 37±9 | 62±18 | <0.001 |
| Right ventricular systolic pressure, mm Hg | 37±7 | 39±8 | 0.22 |
AS, aortic stenosis; EuroSCORE, European system for cardiac operative risk evaluation; LVEF, left ventricular ejection fraction; NYHA, New York Heart Association functional class; STS, Society of Thoracic Surgeons.