Combined approach for a left pneumonectomy and carinal reconstruction.

Tumor involving the carina is a real challenge to thoracic surgeons due to the complexity of airway reconstruction and management. Carinal resection is a safe procedure in highly selected patients with acceptable morbidity and mortality and good long-term survival. A 32-year-old lady with adenoid cystic carcinoma arising from the left main bronchus underwent carinal pneumonectomy using a combined thoracotomy and midline sternotomy approach without the use of cardiopulmonary bypass.

Left atrial mass in children following cardiac surgery: unravelling the diagnosis.

The differential diagnosis of a left atrial mass on echocardiogram includes thrombus, vegetation, tumour, and other rare causes like septal aneurysm, pulmonary vein remnant, and septal haematoma. We present interesting echocardiographic images of a rare condition which can masquerade as a left atrial mass following cardiac surgery.

Neuroendocrine tumour with Tetralogy of Fallot: a case report.

Paragangliomas occurring with cyanotic heart disease is a known association. We present a case of an active paraganglioma in a child with unoperated Tetralogy of Fallot, which posed a management challenge considering the pathophysiology of both these conditions.

Aortopexy - an effective strategy for relief of left main bronchus compression.

Congenital anomalies of aortic arch and pulmonary arteries can cause airway compression in children. We present a rare case of left main bronchus compression between the right pulmonary artery and descending thoracic aorta, which was successfully treated by aortopexy.

Bentall’s Procedure in Pediatric Mixed Connective Tissue Disease Syndrome: Management of Pediatric Aortic Aneurysm - A Brief Review.

Mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD) syndrome in children may lead to large aortic aneurysms, which in turn pose a difficult surgical problem. Valve-sparing root replacement is not always a viable option as the disease process invariably affects the aortic valve leaflets. Among pediatric patients, the Ross procedure is contraindicated on account of weakness of the pulmonary root, while Bentall surgery is the 'gold standard' treatment of aortic aneurysm, with reproducible and excellent long-term results. The case is presented of a three-year-old girl with a large thoracic aortic aneurysm in whom Bentall's surgery was performed, with a good result. The present patient, with MCTD syndrome, was too young to have undergone aortic root replacement with a composite mechanical valved graft.

Novel Technique of Dual Chamber Pacing Through Mini-thoracotomy and Transatrial Endocardial Active Fixation Lead Insertion for Epicardial Pacing Lead Malfunction.

Epicardial pacing lead fixation is employed in patients with cavopulmonary anastamosis (Glenn shunts) when they need permanent pacing. Epicardial pacing in these patients may malfunction due to high pacing thresholds or diaphragmatic pacing. A novel technique of transatrial insertion of two endocardial screw-in pacing leads through right anterolateral minithoracotomy could achieve synchronous atrioventricular pacing in a patient with Ebsteins anomaly with symptomatic sinoatrial and atrioventricular nodal disease.

Unusual clinical presentation of rare adult survivors with a missing pulmonary valve associated with a missing left pulmonary artery.

Tetralogy of Fallot with absent pulmonary valve syndrome is associated with absence of the left pulmonary artery in one-seventh of cases. Infants with this disorder commonly present very early in life with respiratory distress and heart failure. Because the pulmonary blood flow is primarily to the right lung only, severe respiratory distress occurs. Survival to late childhood without surgery is very rare due to clinical worsening in infancy. This report describes two adult natural survivors with this rare association who presented with extremely unusual unreported clinical features. The aneurysmally dilated main pulmonary artery was compressed on the left coronary ostium, causing angina in the first patient. The second patient had recurrent ventricular tachycardia originating from the dilated thinned out right ventricular outflow tract. Both patients had successful surgical correction with valved xenograft conduits.

Longevity of neonatal ductal stenting for congenital heart diseases with duct-dependent pulmonary circulation.

INTRODUCTION: Ductal stent (DS) in duct-dependent pulmonary circulation is less morbid than neonatal Blalock-Taussig shunt. However, there is concern if DS provides an adequately long palliation before definitive repair. METHODS: This is a retrospective review of clinical follow-up of all consecutive infants after successful DS performed by a single operator. They were divided into three anatomic groups. Group A neonates had balloon valvotomy for critical pulmonary stenosis or pulmonary atresia with intact ventricular septum, who needed DS patency until the right ventricle was adequate to provide antegrade pulmonary flows. Group B patients with tetralogy of Fallot and pulmonary atresia suited for later biventricular repair needed ductal patency until conduit surgery was completed. Group C patients with functionally univentricular hearts needed DS patency until bidirectional Glenn shunt completion. RESULTS: Among 22 infants, four Group A patients followed for 26-54 months after balloon pulmonary valvotomy had adequate oxygen saturation and needed only short-term DS patency. In six out of nine Group B patients, corrective biventricular repair using conduits was performed after 5-14 months at a body weight of 5-7.5 kg. Bidirectional Glenn shunt and confluence repair were performed in seven of nine Group C patients weighing 6-8.5 kg after 8-15 months. The hilar pulmonary artery growth in B and C groups was adequate for surgical repair. No patient needed stent redilatations or additional shunts on follow-up for hypoxia. Four patients had sudden death. CONCLUSIONS: The short-term patency of DS was adequate after balloon valvotomy for critical pulmonary stenosis or pulmonary atresia with intact ventricular septum. Duration of palliation by DS was also sufficient in univentricular hearts to allow adequate somatic growth before Glenn surgery. In patients with biventricular anatomy treated by DS, conduit repair had to be performed at a relatively early age. Interstage mortality was 18%.

Repair of tetralogy of Fallot with ascending and proximal aortic arch aneurysm: case report.

Abnormalities in the aorta of patients with tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) can lead to aortic dilatation and aortic regurgitation. We report a six-year-old male with TOF with dysplastic aortic valve, severe aortic regurgitation, and aortic aneurysm involving the aortic root, ascending aorta, and the proximal aortic arch, who underwent TOF repair with aortic replacement up to the proximal aortic arch with a composite graft without circulatory arrest.

Transcatheter management of subtotal cor triatriatum sinister: a rare anomaly.

Subtotal cor triatriatum sinister (partially divided left atrium) is characterized by a membrane dividing the left atrium into two portions: a dorsal accessory proximal chamber that receives part of the pulmonary venous return and a small restrictive defect in the membrane that obstructs blood flow from the accessory chamber to the left atrium and results in unilateral pulmonary venous hypertension. This clinical entity is very rarely reported in the literature. This first report of successful transcatheter management of a subdivided left atrium obstructing right pulmonary venous drainage discusses the anatomic, morphologic, and procedural details.

Outcome of single ventricle and total anomalous pulmonary venous connection.

Management of patients with single-ventricle physiology is significantly affected by anomalies of pulmonary venous return at all stages, whether primary palliation, bidirectional Glenn shunt, or completion of Fontan circulation. We treated 25 patients with pulmonary venous anomalies and single ventricle by staged palliation, from June 1996 to May 2005. Visceral heterotaxy with atrial isomerism was present in 19 of them. Primary palliation with a systemic-to-pulmonary artery shunt was undertaken in 15 patients. There were 5 early deaths, of which 4 were due to obstruction of pulmonary venous return. A bidirectional Glenn shunt was constructed in 17 patients including 10 who had it as a primary palliative procedure. There were 7 early deaths after the bidirectional Glenn procedure; only one was due to pulmonary venous obstruction. Five patients attained completion of the Fontan procedure. There was one early death after the Fontan operation. Anomalous pulmonary venous return can significantly complicate the management of patients with single ventricle, with an impact on survival in early infancy. Palliation with the aim of instituting extracardiac conduit Fontan circulation allows greater latitude and more streamlined management.

Arterial switch operation without coronary translocation: mid-term results.

We innovated a technique of arterial switch operation without coronary translocation in 1995, which avoids problems related to coronary artery translocation with good mid-term results. It is a better alternative for surgeons who are not well versed with coronary translocation of conventional arterial switch operation and with difficult coronary anatomy. This report deals with the mid-term results of our new technique.

Arterial switch operation with in situ coronary reallocation for transposition of great arteries with single coronary artery.

OBJECTIVES: Transposition of great arteries (TGA) with single coronary artery pattern is one of the high-risk groups for arterial switch operation (ASO). Any traction or kinking during coronary transfer can lead to a fatal outcome. With increase in experience, surgical results improved, but it did not completely eliminate the risks of coronary translocation. Many techniques have been described for transfer of single coronary and each one has its own merits and problems. We here in describe a new technique of in situ coronary reallocation during ASO for TGA with single coronary and also report the early and mid-term results with this new technique. METHODS: From September 1988 to June 2002, five consecutive cases of TGA with single coronary artery were operated employing this new technique. Their age ranged from 16 days to 9 months. ASO was done by transecting the great arteries just above the commissures. For coronary reallocation, hockey stick-shaped incisions were made in the facing sinuses of the proximal aorta and the pulmonary artery. These flaps were sutured in such a way that the coronary ostium was committed to the neo-aorta with the rest of surgical procedure done in the usual manner. RESULTS: All five patients had ASO. Additionally, four patients had closure of an associated ventricular septal defect and one patient had repair of the coarctation of the aorta. There was no in hospital mortality. All patients had follow-up echocardiograms at regular intervals, which showed no significant right or left ventricular outflow obstruction, no regional wall motion abnormalities and no neo-aortic or neo-pulmonary regurgitation. Three of five patients had cardiac catheterization and angiocardiography, which showed normal coronary arteries with no obstructive lesions and no neo-aortic regurgitation. Their follow up ranged from 5 to 50 months and there was no late mortality. CONCLUSIONS: This new coronary reallocation technique avoids problems related to coronary translocation such as traction and kinking. It spares the need for dissection of proximal coronary artery and its branches, and thereby eliminates the risk of development of fibrosis and stenosis. The same technique can be used regardless of the sinus of origin of the coronary artery. It is a reliable and a reproducible technique. The early and mid-term results appear excellent in this series.

One-stage repair of cardiac and arch anomalies without circulatory arrest.

Between 1999 and 2002, 23 patients underwent single-stage complete repair of cardiac anomalies and aortic arch obstruction, without circulatory arrest. Median age was 1.2 years. Intracardiac defects included ventricular septal defect in 9, double-outlet right ventricle in 6, d-transposition of the great arteries and ventricular septal defect in 2, subaortic obstruction in 3, and atrial septal defect in 3. Fourteen patients had coarctation of the aorta, 6 had coarctation with hypoplastic aortic arch, and 3 had interrupted aortic arch. Simple techniques were employed such as cannulation of the ascending aorta near the innominate artery and maintaining cerebral and myocardial perfusion. After correction of arch obstruction, intracardiac repair was undertaken. The mean cardiopulmonary bypass time was 169 min, aortic crossclamp time was 51 min, and arch repair took 16 min. There was no operative mortality or neurological deficit. In follow-up of 1-43 months, no patient had residual coarctation. This simplified technique avoids additional procedures, reduces ischemic time, and prevents problems related to circulatory arrest.

Reimplantation of the two coronary ostia as a single button in Ross procedure.

A 10-year-old boy presented with severe aortic regurgitation due to a dysplastic aortic valve. He underwent a Ross procedure employing a mini-root replacement technique. At surgery, he was found to have eccentrically located coronary ostia which were both reimplanted as a single button into the pulmonary autograft. Postoperatively, multislice computed tomographic coronary angiography demonstrated satisfactory reimplantation of the coronary artery ostia with no evidence of kinking or compression of the coronary arteries. This case report supports the technique of transfer of coronary ostia as a single button where coronary anatomy is unfavorable for their individual transfer.