A modified transatrial approach for repair of postinfarction ventricular septal defect

We describe a modified transatrial approach through the left atrium for basal-inferior VSD. After left atriotomy, mitral valve is detached from the annulus to expose the defect, which is closed with a pericardial patch. Two patients were operated by this method. In both cases veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation with a ventricular vent was utilised to unload the left ventricle. Echocardiography revealed no residual shunt in both cases.
Source: The Annals of Thoracic Surgery - Category: Cardiovascular & Thoracic Surgery Source Type: research