title: [Surgical treatment of secundum atrial septal defects in adults over 30 years old].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To summarize the experience of surgical treatment of secundum atrial septal defects in adults over 30 years old.
  
  
  METHODS
  There were 469 patients with secundum atrial septal defects in our study (male 144, female 325; ages 30-68, mean 38.6 years old). There were 105 cases with pulmonary hypertension and 458 cases with arrhythmia in the group. Surgical closure of defects were performed in all patients. Surgical closure of 358 cases were done by patches including 305 autologous pericardial patches. The low dose (6 x 10(-6)) nitric oxide inhalation was used in 25 postoperative patients with pulmonary hypertension. Right sided maze procedures were done in 5 cases with atrial fibrillation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Surgical mortality was 0.6% (3 cases), the others were healed. In the group, there were 180 cases with arrhythmia, 27 cases with left ventricular function amyoplasia, 28 cases with low cardiac output syndrome, 12 cases in secondary operation for bleeding and 1 case with air-embolism. The level of mean pulmonary artery pressure of 25 postoperative patients with pulmonary hypertension inhaled nitric oxide was down 28.5%. After right sided maze procedures were done in 5 cases with atrial fibrillation, atrial fibrillation disappeared. 352 cases were followed up from 3 months to 20 years (mean 5.6 years). Twenty-nine cases were in class I-II of cardiac function, and the others were better than class I of cardiac function.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Atrial septal defects in adult should be operated as early as possible. When patch is needed, an autologous pericardial patch is the first selection. Inhaled nitric oxide is an effective method to postoperative pulmonary hypertension. The maze operation should be performed for atrial septal defect with atrial fibrillation while the surgical closure of defect was done. During and after operation, much attention should be paid to preventing and curing arrhythmia and protecting and supporting left heart function.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery of the General Hospital of Shenyang Military Region, Shenyang 110016, China.
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Zeng-wei
authors.initials: ZW
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Hong-yu
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Ren-fu
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Han-dong
authors.initials: HD
authors.lastname: Gong
authors.forename: Hui-shan
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Xin-min
authors.initials: XM
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Heng-chang
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Song
mesh_terms: D000280:Administration, Inhalation; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000601:surgery; D045462:Endothelium-Dependent Relaxing Factors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D006344:Heart Septal Defects, Atrial / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D006976:Hypertension, Pulmonary / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000188:drug therapy; D012189:Retrospective Studies
chemical_list: D045462:Endothelium-Dependent Relaxing Factors; D009569:Nitric Oxide