Poor outcomes after surgery for coarctation repair with hypoplastic arch warrants more extensive initial surgery and close long-term follow-up.
OBJECTIVE
Late outcomes of repair of coarctation with arch hypoplasia have not yet been described. Hypertension and arch reobstruction frequently occur after standard coarctation repair and thus we sought to determine the long-term results of repair in the subset of patients with arch hypoplasia at a single institution over a 20-year period.


METHODS
We reviewed the files of the 305 consecutive patients quoted to have arch hypoplasia who had undergone a coarctation repair in a single institution between 1984 and 2004. Repair was performed through a sternotomy in 74 patients (24%), 58 of them undergoing a repair consisting of an end-to-side anastomosis.


RESULTS
Early mortality was 9% but there was only 1 death among patients without a major associated anomaly. Eight patients required reintervention before discharge due to residual obstruction. The follow-up was available in 96% of the patients. Only 45% of the patients over 15 years of age had cardiology review in the last 2 years. Survival at 10 and 20 years was 94% (95% CI: 91-97%) and 92% (95% CI: 86-95%), respectively. There were a total of 66 late reinterventions in 49 (18%) patients. Ten- and 20-year freedom from reintervention was 84% (95% CI: 78-88%) and 72% (95% CI: 63-80%), respectively. Ten- and 20-year freedom from reobstruction was 75% (95% CI: 69-80%) and 45% (95% CI: 34-55%), respectively. Patients undergoing end-to-side repair from sternotomy had less arch reobstruction than those undergoing extended end-to-end repair by thoracotomy (92 vs 61% freedom from reobstruction at 10 years, P < 0.001). Only 68% of the patients were normotensive at the last follow-up. Arch obstruction on echocardiogram was associated with an increased prevalence of hypertension (P = 0.018).


CONCLUSIONS
After coarctation repair, half of the patients with hypoplasia of the transverse arch will develop arch reobstruction and a third will become hypertensive. The technique of end-to-side repair performed through a sternotomy seems to alleviate these issues, and could be offered to a larger proportion of patients with hypoplasia of the aortic arch. Many of these patients are lost to follow-up during adolescence, at a time when ongoing care seems mandatory.
Department of Cardiac Surgery,  Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne,  Australia.
Sandeep S
SS
Rakhra
Melissa
M
Lee
Ajay J
AJ
Iyengar
Gavin R
GR
Wheaton
Leeanne
L
Grigg
Igor E
IE
Konstantinov
Christian P
CP
Brizard
Yves
Y
d'Udekem
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000714:Anastomosis, Surgical; D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000002:abnormalities / Q000601:surgery*; D001017:Aortic Coarctation / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000401:mortality; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D017052:Hospital Mortality; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000601:surgery; D015994:Incidence; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012008:Recurrence; D012086:Reoperation; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D056346:Sternotomy; D013908:Thoracotomy; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014739:Victoria / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult