Overview: History, Anatomy, Timing, and Results of Complete Atrioventricular Canal

The past 50 years have been marked by major advances in the care of children with complete atrioventricular canal defects. There have been important contributions from surgeons, cardiologists, and pathologists to provide us with our current understanding of the anatomy of atrioventricular canal defects and excellent surgical outcomes. In this monograph we will discuss the surgical contributions of Lillehei, Kirklin, McGoon, Maloney, Trusler, Wilcox, and Nunn. The improvements in outcomes achieved by these surgeons were made possible by the pathology and anatomy clarifications provided by Lev, Rastelli, and Anderson.