Right heart operations without cardiopulmonary bypass: the use of temporary total cavopulmonary connection.

Although cardiopulmonary bypass is essential for most cardiac operations, it is preferable to avoid it because of its nonphysiologic nature and complications. For coronary artery bypass surgeries, off-pump methods have been developed, but few advances have been made for intracardiac operations. We have developed a technique to perform operations inside the right heart chambers without using cardiopulmonary bypass. In this technique, blood from cavae is directly guided toward the pulmonary artery using cannulas.