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Contemporary outcomes of surgical ventricular septal defect closure

Brett R Anderson1, Kristen N Stevens, Susan C Nicolson

  • 1Department of Pediatrics, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.

The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery
|February 19, 2013
PubMed

Insights

In pediatric cardiac surgery, infant weight significantly impacts outcomes for ventricular septal defect (VSD) repair. Lower weight in infants undergoing VSD closure correlates with increased risk and longer hospital stays.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Cardiac Surgery
  • Congenital Heart Defects
  • Surgical Outcomes Research

Background:

  • Surgical closure of ventricular septal defects (VSDs) is a common pediatric cardiac procedure.
  • Limited contemporary data exists on risk factors and non-mortality outcomes for VSD repair.
  • Understanding these factors is crucial for optimizing patient care.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To assess baseline characteristics and outcomes of children undergoing surgical repair of VSDs.
  • To identify risk factors and drivers of morbidity in a contemporary cohort.
  • To analyze the impact of patient weight on VSD repair outcomes.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective analysis of 369 consecutive VSD closures at a single institution.
  • Focus on morbidity due to low mortality rates.
  • Multivariable linear regression modeling to identify risk drivers.

Main Results:

  • For infants < 6 months, each kilogram increase in operative weight reduced length of stay by 2.3 days.
  • Infants < 6 months with VSD repair showed a 1.8-fold increased composite risk for each kilogram decrease in weight.
  • No significant difference in risk was observed for patients > 6 months based on weight.

Conclusions:

  • Infant weight is a significant predictor of morbidity and length of stay after VSD closure.
  • Weight should be a key consideration when discussing operative risks for young infants undergoing VSD repair.
  • These findings are relevant irrespective of the specific indication for VSD surgery.
Abstract

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