title: Surgical treatment of congenital coronary artery fistulas: 27 years' experience and a review of the literature.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  A congenital coronary artery fistula (CAF) is a relatively rare congenital anomaly and is defined as an abnormal direct communication between any coronary artery and any of the cardiac chambers. This article reviews our experience over the past 27 years, as well as other literature, and discusses the surgical indications and methods relating to CAF.
  
  
  METHODS
  From 1973, 25 patients aged from 2 to 69 years underwent surgical treatment for congenital CAF. Seventeen patients were diagnosed as isolated CAF. All patients under 19 years of age with isolated CAF were asymptomatic. Twenty fistulas originated from the left coronary artery and 9 from the right. The pulmonary artery was the most dominant drainage site. Four patients among the isolated CAF cases were surgically treated without a cardiopulmonary bypass.
  
  
  RESULTS
  All patients were discharged from hospital without any perioperative complications. Postoperative coronary angiography was done on all patients with only one slightly residual CAF flow. The average follow-up time was 9.6 years and all patients were asymptomatic and doing well.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Definitive surgical correction is safe and effective, with good results. Therefore, it should be considered even in asymptomatic patients because of the risk of future complications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Kanazawa University School of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kamiya
authors.forename: Tamotsu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yasuda
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nagamine
authors.forename: Naoki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sakakibara
authors.forename: Satoru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nishida
authors.forename: Michio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kawasuji
authors.forename: Go
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Watanabe
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001158:Arteries / Q000002:abnormalities / Q000601:surgery; D001164:Arteriovenous Fistula / Q000151:congenital* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures; D002315:Cardiopulmonary Bypass; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D017023:Coronary Angiography; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000151:congenital* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011651:Pulmonary Artery / Q000002:abnormalities / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D016896:Treatment Outcome