Late coronary complications after arterial switch operation and their treatment.

OBJECTIVES: To report the late coronary complications and their treatment after arterial switch operation (ASO). BACKGROUND: Asymptomatic patients after ASO may have coronary ostial stenosis or obstruction. METHODS: Since 1980, 279 patients were operated with ASO. At the time of preparing this article, selective follow-up coronary angiograms were done on 81 patients. RESULTS: Coronary stenosis was found in six patients. A 6-year-old patient with left coronary artery (LCA) ostial stenosis and a 9-year-old patient with conus branch occlusion had good collaterals without a need for further treatment. One patient with LCA obstruction, myocardial infarction, and left ventricular failure was operated with osteoplasty at age of 16 years. In three essentially asymptomatic patients, stenting of LCA ostium stenosis was done: in two of them with drug-eluting stents at 9 and 10 years of age and in one with bare-metal stent at 18 years of age. One of these patients was earlier treated with balloon dilatation at 5 years of age which caused intimal dissection. CONCLUSIONS: Asymptomatic patients with an uneventful course after ASO may have coronary obstruction. This necessitates follow-up coronary evaluation in all patients. Stenting of the coronary arteries is an option for treatment.

Normal coronary flow reserve after arterial switch operation for transposition of the great arteries: an intracoronary Doppler guidewire study.

BACKGROUND: Recent studies performed with positron emission tomography have suggested that coronary flow reserve (CFR) is moderately to severely reduced after the arterial switch operation (ASO). These findings are of great concern but have not been confirmed by other methods. METHODS AND RESULTS: Eleven symptom-free children were studied between 4 and 11 (median 6.0) years after the ASO. Flow velocity in the left anterior descending (LAD) and right coronary arteries (RCA) was measured with a 0.014-inch Doppler FloWire (Cardiometrics) before and after intracoronary injection of adenosine (0.5 microg/kg) and nitroglycerin (5 microg/kg). CFR was defined as the ratio of hyperemic to basal average peak velocity (APV). The median (range) CFR in the LAD was 3.7 (3.0 to 4.8) and 3.4 (2.9 to 4.8) in the RCA. The increase in APV after intracoronary injection of nitroglycerin was 300% (240% to 420%) in the LAD and 260% (190% to 460%) in the RCA. APV at rest was 15.0 (14.0 to 21.0) cm/s in the LAD and 16.0 (9.6 to 30.0) cm/s in the RCA. A linear relation was found between right ventricular systolic pressure and resting APV in the RCA (r=0.77, P=0.0056), and between resting APV and CFR (r=-0.61, P<0.05) in the RCA. CONCLUSIONS: The CFR and coronary vasoreactivity to nitroglycerin in children treated for transposition of the great arteries with the ASO was within normal limits. Increased right ventricular pressure and myocardial hypertrophy can cause increased resting coronary flow velocity in the RCA and affect CFR negatively.

[Transplantation and donation of tissues--six years with the new law. Experiences from the tissue bank in Lund]. / Transplantation och donation av vävnader--sex år med nya lagen. Erfarenheter från vävnadsbanken i Lund.

Tissue transplantation is more common than organ transplantation. Legislative changes in 1996 transformed tissue banking and conditions for tissue transplantation in Sweden. After an initial decrease in donated tissue, heart valves are now available in sufficient numbers, but there is sometimes a shortage of valves the right size for pediatric cardiac surgery. Since the new transplantation legislation was implemented there has been an increase in the number of valves from neonatal donation and after sudden infant death. The number of donated corneas does not correspond to the number required for transplantation. A number of tissue coordinators have been established throughout the country and recently some new tissue banks were founded to increase the amount of tissue available for transplantation. The organization of the tissue bank in Lund is described. There is a lack of knowledge about tissue transplantation and donation among health professionals as well as the general public, and more education is warranted.

Use of pediatric Berlin Heart EXCOR biventricular device as a bridge to retransplantation in a 10-month-old infant with acute graft failure after cardiac transplantation.

We report the implantation of the Berlin Heart EXCOR (Berlin Heart, Berlin, Germany) as a pediatric biventricular assist device in a 10-month-old boy with primary graft failure after cardiac transplantation. The EXCOR was successfully used as a bridge to cardiac retransplantation. The pneumatically driven paracorporeal device supported the patient for 165 days until another suitable heart was obtained.

Outcome of surgical commissurotomy for aortic valve stenosis in early infancy.

BACKGROUND: The method of treatment of aortic valve stenosis in early infancy is still controversial. This study was performed to evaluate short-term and long-term outcome in our center during a 14-year period. METHODS: Between 1991 and 2004, 64 consecutive patients younger than 3 months old underwent open surgical commissurotomy because of aortic valve stenosis. Median age was 18 days (range, 1 to 79 days), and median weight was 3.6 kg (range, 1.9 to 6.7 kg). Left ventricular function was good in 44 patients (69%), depressed in 12 (19%), and poor in 8 (12%). The study ended in July 2005. Median follow-up time was 4.1 years (range, 0.4 to 13.6 years). RESULTS: The 30-day mortality was 3 of 64 patients and late mortality was 3 of 61, and the respective mortality in patients younger than 1 month old was 2 of 41 and 2 of 39. There was no early mortality after 1993 and no late mortality after 1999. Thirteen patients required reoperation. Median time to reoperation was 4.3 years (range, 0.2 to 11.3 years) and to aortic valve replacement (7 Ross and 1 homograft) was 6.9 years (range, 1.6 to 9.7 years). At the last follow-up, all had good left ventricular function and 57 of 58 had an ability index of 1. CONCLUSIONS: Surgical commissurotomy for aortic valve stenosis during the first 3 months of life can be done with low mortality and morbidity. The risk for early recurrent stenosis or regurgitation is low, and the need for aortic valve replacement can, in most cases, be delayed until the child is older. The long-term functional ability is excellent.

Heart transplantation across the antibodies against HLA and ABO.

We have intentionally performed heart transplantation in a 5-year-old child, despite the most unfavourable risk factors for patient survival; the presence of high level of antibodies against donor's human leucocyte antigen (HLA) class I/II and blood group antigens. Pretransplant treatment by mycophenolate mofetil, prednisolone, tacrolimus, intravenous immunoglobulin, rituximab, protein-A immunoadsorption (IA) and plasma exchange reduced antibody titres against the donor's lymphocytes from 128 to 16 and against the donor's blood group antigen from 256 to 0. The patient was urgently transplanted with a heart from an ABO incompatible donor (A(1) to O). A standard triple-drug immunosuppressive protocol was used. No hyperacute rejection was seen. Antibodies against the donor's HLA antigens remained at a low level despite three acute rejections. Rising anti-A(1) blood group antibodies preceded the second rejection and were reduced by two blood group-specific IAs and remained at a low level. The patient is doing well despite the persistence of donor-reactive antibodies.