Inducible atrial flutter after the Mustard repair of complete transposition of the great arteries.
Atrial flutter is a common postoperative arrhythmia in patients with complete transposition of the great arteries (d-TGA) after the Mustard repair. Sixty patients with d-TGA who had the Mustard repair were evaluated by electrophysiologic studies. Thirty-three (55%) had inducible sustained atrial flutter; 17 of them developed spontaneous clinical episodes of atrial flutter (clinical atrial flutter group) and 16 did not (nonclinical atrial flutter group). In 6 of the 17 patients (35%) with clinical inducible atrial flutter, the condition was first documented in the electrophysiologic laboratory with subsequent development of spontaneous clinical episodes. Catheter endocardial mapping, used to determine atrial activation sequences and and conduction intervals, revealed intraatrial conduction delays with late activation of the low atrial sites in all patients. Abnormalities of atrial refractoriness were present, with a greater dispersion of atrial refractoriness found in the clinical atrial flutter group. Severe abnormalities of sinus nodal function appeared to a significantly greater degree among patients who had clinical episodes of atrial flutter. These electrophysiologic abnormalities and associated arrhythmias may predispose patients with d-TGA to sudden death.
Vetter
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VL
Division of Cardiology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104.
Tanner
C S
CS
Horowitz
L N
LN
D001282:Atrial Flutter / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006328:Cardiac Catheterization; D002304:Cardiac Pacing, Artificial; D002648:Child; D004562:Electrocardiography; D004594:Electrophysiology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006329:Heart Conduction System / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000209:etiology*; D014188:Transposition of Great Vessels / Q000601:surgery*