[Surgery for postinfarction ventricular septal perforation under hypothermic fibrillatory arrest with pulsatile...

Surgery were performed by 2 different methods of myocardial protection in 17 patients with postinfarction ventricular septal perforation (VSP) from 1982 to 1989. Ten consecutive operations were performed using hypothermic fibrillatory arrest with pulsatile perfusion (VF group). Pulsatile flow was produced by an intra-aortic balloon pumping device. Other 7 consecutive VSP operations were performed using cardioplegic arrest (CP group). In the VF group, the mean age was 67 years (range 54 to 78 years), and VSP was located in the anterior wall in 7, in the inferior wall in 2, and in the anterior and inferior walls in 1 patients. The operation was performed 2.5 days after the onset of VSP. In the CP group, the mean age was 71 years (range 50 to 78 years), and VSP was located in the anterior wall in 6 and in the inferior wall in 1 patient. The operation was performed 4.7 days after the onset of VSP. Cardiogenic shock developed after septal rupture in 50% of the patients in the VF group and 71% in the CP group (N.S.). Prior to the operation, no significant differences were found in hemodynamic status between the 2 groups. Cardiac index in the VF group was higher than that of the CP group (p less than 0.05) shortly after cardiopulmonary bypass. The operative mortality rate was 10% in the VF group and 57% in the CP group. From these clinical results, hypothermic fibrillatory arrest with pulsatile perfusion can be beneficial as a method of myocardial protection during surgery for VSP and presently this has become the method of choice in our department.