Non-conduit repair of truncus arteriosus

BackgroundPrimary complete repair of truncus arteriosus (TA) is the goal in the current era of cardiac surgery. In the absence of valved conduits, non-conduit repair remains possible in spite of less optimal hemodynamics and could be a solution for this category of patients in the developing countries.Patients and methodsThis is a review of eight patients operated upon in the national heart institute from January 2013 to November 2015. They underwent non-conduit repair of truncus arteriosus by the modifications of the Barbero-Marcial technique through window like separation of the common trunk, approximating the pulmonary artery to right ventricular outflow tract and completed by autologous pericardial patch.ResultsThe mean age was 43.75 days with range 20–80 days. The mean body weight was 3.5 kg with range 2.8–4.5 kg. There were two early mortality cases in the intensive care unit (ICU). The mean ventilation time was 38.6 h with range 18–66 h. The mean ICU stay was 6.3 days with range 3–11 days. Pre-discharge echocardiography revealed mean gradient across the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) 24 mmHg with range 14–34 mmHg and mean grade of pulmonary incompetence (PI) was 2.3 with range of 1–3.ConclusionThe non-conduit repair is a good alternative for type I TA, especially when it is the only available solution.