Surgical Management of Patent Ductus Arteriosus in Infancy

Abstract

Congenital cardiovascular abnormalities remain a major cause of infant mortality. The incidence of congenital cardiovascular defects approximate 0.3% to 0.8% of all births. MacMahon et al¹ estimate that 25% of infants with major cardiovascular defects will die within the first month of life, and that 60% will die within the first year. Isolated patent ductus arteriosus, a readily corrected defect, accounts for about 15% of all congenital cardiovascular anomalies. During the first year of life, approximately 15% of patients with patent ductus arteriosus will develop either overt signs of cardiac failure, cardiomegaly, electrocardiographic abnormalities, repeated respiratory tract infection, dyspnea, or evidence of retarded growth.² The mortality of elective surgical closure of a patent ductus arteriosus has been shown to be extremely low,³ and the value of operation in infancy has been increasingly recognized. Indeed, procrastination because of age or size in infants with congestive heart failure secondary to