Technical considerations for valve repair in patients with congenital heart disease.

Valve repair is a critical element in the surgical treatment of congenital heart disease. Growing children require a longitudinal management strategy not commonly necessary in adult cardiac surgery. The use of valve prostheses poses unique problems in children, not only due to size limitations, but also to difficulties with chronic medical management. For these reasons, considerable effort is given to repairing even severely malformed valves in pediatric patients. This article provides a brief overview of some commonly used techniques in reparative valve surgery in children.