Patient selection for repair of complete atrioventricular canal guided by echocardiography.
OBJECTIVE
Two-dimensional, Doppler and color-flow echocardiography is accepted as a safe diagnostic tool to guide the surgical treatment of certain congenital heart defects. Its role for surgical indication in patients with complete atrioventricular canal (cAVC) is described in this paper.


METHODS
Between July 1989 and January 1995, 80 patients with cAVC underwent primary repair in our Institution. In 73 surgery was guided only by echocardiography (Group I), while in the remaining 7 patients (Group II) cardiac catheterization was performed because of unclear diagnosis and/or suspected associated malformations.


RESULTS
Echocardiography showed an overall sensitivity of 100% and specificity of 93% in detecting associated malformations.


CONCLUSIONS
Based on these data and on the knowledge of the natural history of pulmonary vascular changes in patients with cAVC we think that echocardiography might be adequate for selection of infants with uncomplicated forms of cAVC for primary repair.
Santoro
G
G
Bambino Gesu' Hospital, Rome, Italy.
Marino
B
B
Di Carlo
D
D
Formigari
R
R
Santoro
G
G
Marcelletti
C
C
Pasquini
L
L
D002675:Child, Preschool; D004314:Down Syndrome / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery; D004452:Echocardiography; D018618:Echocardiography, Doppler, Color; D005260:Female; D006325:Heart Atria / Q000002:abnormalities* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery; D006343:Heart Septal Defects / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000002:abnormalities* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D006439:Hemodynamics / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D010166:Palliative Care; D010210:Papillary Muscles / Q000002:abnormalities* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D018579:Patient Selection; D012307:Risk Factors; D015996:Survival Rate