title: Absorbable pulmonary artery banding: a strategy for reducing reoperations.
abstract: Pulmonary artery banding (PAB) remains in the armamentarium of techniques for several congenital cardiac anomalies, but necessitates a reoperation for eventual removal. We sought to assess the efficacy of an absorbable PAB in obviating the requirement for reoperation.
  
  
  
  From 2003 to 2015, 45 consecutive patients with a median age of 1.6 months (2 days-11 months) underwent placement of a polydioxanone absorbable PAB. In 28 patients (62%), the band was placed concomitantly to a ventricular septal defect (VSD) closure and in 17 (38%), the band was the sole procedure for the VSDs. Fourteen patients had additional cardiac anomalies and 9 patients had aortic arch anomalies, which were repaired at the time of absorbable PAB placement.
  
  
  
  There was 1 hospital death. The band was removed early in 3 patients. Mean time to follow-up was 5.2 ± 3.5 years. Overall, 32 of the 41 patients discharged from hospital with absorbable PABs did not require reoperation on the VSDs or the band, resulting in a single-stage definitive repair of 78%. Median time to absorbable PAB resorption was 7.2 months (interquartile range, 5.0-10.4). Freedom from reoperation related to residual VSDs or PAB obstruction was 78% (95% CI: 61-87%) at 10 years.
  
  
  
  The use of absorbable polydioxanone PABs is an effective method of reducing reoperations for multiple VSDs. Their use should be incorporated in the surgical strategy for repair of muscular and residual VSDs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiac Surgery, The Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia.|Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Daley
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiac Surgery, The Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia.|Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia.|Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
authors.forename: Christian P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Brizard
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiac Surgery, The Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia.|Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia.|Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
authors.forename: Igor E
authors.initials: IE
authors.lastname: Konstantinov
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiac Surgery, The Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia.
authors.forename: Johann
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Brink
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiac Surgery, The Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia.|Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia.|Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
authors.forename: Bryn
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiac Surgery, The Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia.|Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia.|Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
authors.forename: Yves
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: d'Udekem
mesh_terms: D020341:Absorbable Implants; D003250:Constriction; D005260:Female; D006345:Heart Septal Defects, Ventricular / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D016687:Polydioxanone; D011184:Postoperative Period; D011651:Pulmonary Artery / Q000601:surgery*; D012086:Reoperation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D016687:Polydioxanone
keywords: Absorbable pulmonary artery banding