Increased postoperative and respiratory complications in patients with congenital heart disease associated with heterotaxy

Our findings show heterotaxy patients had more postsurgical events with increased postsurgical mortality and risk for respiratory complications as compared to control patients with similar Risk Adjustment in Congenital Heart Surgery-1 surgical complexity scores. We speculate that increased respiratory complications maybe due to ciliary dysfunction. Further studies are needed to explore the basis for the increased surgical risks for heterotaxy patients undergoing cardiac surgery.