The enlargement of small pulmonary arteries by preliminary palliative operations.
Four patients with tetralogy of Fallot, three of whom had congenital pulmonary atresia, were treated by initial palliative operations to enlarge left and right pulmonary arteries which were considered too small for complete repair. Two to four years later the right and left pulmonary arteries had enlarged sufficiently to allow complete repair.
D000790:Angiocardiography; D006328:Cardiac Catheterization; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D010166:Palliative Care; D011651:Pulmonary Artery / Q000601:surgery*; D011664:Pulmonary Valve / Q000002:abnormalities; D013771:Tetralogy of Fallot / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D013997:Time Factors