Coronary artery anatomy in complete transposition with situs solitus and dextrocardia

Chien-Hui Lee1, Ing-Sh Chiu, Chien-Chih Chang

  • 1Department of Surgery, National Taiwan University Hospital and National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan.

Pediatric Cardiology
|March 11, 2010
PubMed

Insights

This study reveals unique coronary artery patterns in complete transposition with dextrocardia, identifying a single coronary artery in the left sinus. This finding aids in predicting coronary anatomy based on situs and aortopulmonary rotation.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiovascular Surgery
  • Pediatric Cardiology
  • Congenital Heart Disease

Background:

  • Complete transposition with situs solitus/levocardia (CTSSL) coronary anatomy is understood.
  • Coronary artery anatomy in complete transposition with situs solitus/dextrocardia (CTSSD) remains undocumented.
  • Arterial switch operations require detailed knowledge of coronary anatomy.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To document and analyze coronary artery anatomy in CTSSD.
  • To correlate CTSSD coronary patterns with those in CTSSL and complete transposition with situs inversus/dextrocardia (CTSID).
  • To investigate the relationship between apicocaval ipsilaterality, aortopulmonary rotation, and coronary patterns.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective analysis of 3 CTSSD cases from 1988-2007.
  • Comparison with 276 CTSSL and 8 CTSID cases.
  • Angiography and surgical intervention data used.
  • Aortic sinus pattern on lateral angiogram defined aortopulmonary rotation.
  • Fisher's exact test for statistical significance.

Main Results:

  • All 3 CTSSD cases exhibited a single coronary artery piercing the left sinus with the right coronary artery in the posterior atrioventricular groove.
  • In contrast, 284 cases without apicocaval ipsilaterality (CTSSL/CTSID) had the left circumflex artery in the posterior atrioventricular groove.
  • CTSSD showed significantly less left lateral aortic rotation compared to CTSSL/CTSID with similar coronary patterns (p < 0.05).

Conclusions:

  • Apicocaval ipsilaterality in CTSSD is associated with a distinct coronary artery pattern.
  • This pattern involves a single coronary artery originating from the left sinus.
  • Predicting coronary anatomy in the posterior atrioventricular groove is possible based on situs, aiding surgical planning.

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