Transaortic closure of ventricular septal defect in atrioventricular discordance with pulmonary stenosis or atresia. Results in five patients.

In five patients (aged 5 to 11 years) with atrioventricular discordance, pulmonary stenosis or atresia, and origin of the aorta from the right ventricle, transaortic closure of the ventricular septal defect was performed. Double-outlet right ventricle was confirmed in four patients. All patients underwent placement of an extracardiac valved conduit from the anatomic left ventricle to the pulmonary artery. Neither operative death nor postoperative complete heart block resulted. Postoperative follow-up periods were from 3 months to 4 years (average 35 months), and one patient who had no evidence of complete heart block died suddenly 2 years postoperatively. Aortic regurgitation developed in two patients from possible trauma during the operation: Regurgitation was mild (causing symptoms) in one patient who had had poor surgical exposure with a subpulmonic ventricular septal defect and a well-developed subaortic conus; it was trivial (asymptomatic) in the other patient. Transaortic ventricular septal defect closure, suturing a patch on the anatomic left ventricular side in patients with atrioventricular discordance and double-outlet right ventricle or similar anomalies, might help to avoid postoperative complete heart block if the aorta is large and the subaortic conus is not well developed.