An evaluation of long-term results over 10 years after intracardiac repair of tetralogy of Fallot.

A follow-up study was conducted of 166 patients who had survived for more than 10 years after total correction of tetralogy of Fallot. The total number of patients in NYHA class I was 141 (85%); the other 25 patients had been medically treated or had followed a prudent life style. The factors which caused postoperative symptoms were residual lesions and ventricular arrhythmia. Ultrasonic echocardiography showed that among 72 patients with transannular patch, 68 (95%) showed moderate or severe pulmonary incompetence. There was a correlation of gamma = 0.43 between the severity of pulmonary incompetence and cardiothoracic ratio in the 48 patients without any residual lesions, while two cases with severe pulmonary incompetence showed obvious right ventricular failure. Ambulatory ECG monitoring was employed to study 53 patients. As a result, 21 patients were found to present solitary moderate or severe pulmonary incompetence, while premature ventricular contraction of Lown's grade 4A was seen in nine patients (42.9%). In conclusion, it is considered essential to carefully follow up patients after intracardiac repair of tetralogy of Fallot, especially those with severe pulmonary incompetence.