title: Late results of the subclavian flap repair of coarctation in infancy.
abstract: From June 1979 through January 1985, 22 infants under 20 months of age (mean 8 months and 4 kg) underwent coarctation repair with a left subclavian aortoplasty. The most commonly associated lesions were ventricular septal defect (50%), hypoplastic aortic arch (45%), patent ductus arteriosus (41%), transposition of great arteries (22.7%) and other intracardiac lesions comprised 30%. Indication for surgery was congestive heart failure refractory to medical management. All patients were on inotropic support. Two patients required mechanical ventilation preoperatively. Subclavian flap angioplasty was performed with 7.0 continuous polypropylene suture. Ligation of a patent ductus arteriosus was simultaneously done in 8 patients and pulmonary artery banding in 8 others. Four patients (18%) died within 30 days after operation; 3 of them had severe tubular hypoplasia of the aortic arch. Three transient postoperative complications were encountered; chylothorax, subclavian steal syndrome and Horner's syndrome. No hospital deaths occurred in patients with isolated coarctation of the aorta. All survivors were followed for a period varying from 3 to 6.5 years (mean, 2 years). There were 3 late deaths (13.6%). Non invasive studies have shown a satisfactory result in 14 patients with a residual gradient less than 20 mmHg and in 10 of them, cardiac catheterization and cineangiography showed no evidence of significant stenosis. In one patient only, femoral pulses were absent 4 months postoperatively. These results and reports of others indicate, contrary to the age, that the presence of associated disease affects mortality. Prompt repair of coarctation of the aorta in all infants with or without symptoms is recommended and the subclavian flap procedure appears to be a simple and safe method for relief of coarctation of the aorta in critically ill infants.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Haut-leveque Cardiological Hospital, Bordeaux, France.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Baudet
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: al-Qudah
mesh_terms: D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000601:surgery; D001017:Aortic Coarctation / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D013348:Subclavian Artery / Q000601:surgery*; D013536:Suture Techniques; D013997:Time Factors