title: [Development of the Fontan procedure as therapeutic concept for children with complex congenital heart disease].
abstract: The spectrum of congenital heart defects reaches from very simple to extremely complex anomalies. 3 decades earlier, the prognosis of children with univentricular heart defects was poor. The Fontan procedure has been offered to patients with a variety of complex cyanotic heart diseases and has resulted in decreased mortality. This review summarizes the development and modifications of the Fontan procedure. The advances in preoperative, intraoperative und postoperative patient management have resulted in greatly improved survivals for even the most complex congenital defects. Over the past 3 decades, the survival of infants with critical congenital heart defects has increased to 90%.
authors.affiliation: Klinik für Herz-, Thorax- und Gefässchirurgie, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität, Mainz, Germany. kuroczynski@uni-mainz.de
authors.forename: Wlodzimierz
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Kuroczynski
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D018729:Fontan Procedure / Q000379:methods*; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D011379:Prognosis; D015996:Survival Rate