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Outcome following surgical closure of secundum atrial septal defect
Author(s) -
Jones DA,
Radford DJ,
Pohlner PG
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
journal of paediatrics and child health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.631
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1440-1754
pISSN - 1034-4810
DOI - 10.1046/j.1440-1754.2001.00659.x
Subject(s) - medicine , septum secundum , pericardial effusion , pericardiocentesis , surgery , odds ratio , effusion , retrospective cohort study , medical record , complication , pediatrics
Objective : To assess the current outcome of surgical closure of secundum atrial septal defects (ASD) in an Australian paediatric population. Methodology : A retrospective chart review of 87 children, aged 2 months to 15 years, was performed for surgery between August 1995 and March 1999. Results : There were no deaths in the patients studied. Approximately one in four patients (24.1%) experienced complications requiring further management. Complication rates were similar to those published previously. However, one in nine patients (11.5%) required surgical drainage of a pericardial effusion. A total of five of 87 (5.7%) patients developed post‐pericardiotomy syndrome (PPS), of whom four required pericardiocentesis. The risk for developing a pericardial effusion requiring drainage or PPS was more than twice in children older than 5 years of age at the time of surgery compared to those aged under 5 years, although there was an insufficient number of subjects in the study to prove this statistically (Odds ratio 2.31). Conclusions : Most patients have an uncomplicated postoperative course following surgical closure of secundum ASD. However, a significant minority (24.1%) do develop complications requiring further management and have a correspondingly longer period of hospitalization. Patients older than 5 years of age were identified as being potentially at greater risk for the development of PPS or a pericardial effusion requiring drainage. Further research needs to be performed to clarify this.