Santiago Justo J, Pedra Carlos A C, Arnoni Daniel, Braga Sergio L N, Esteves César A, Sousa Luís Carlos B, Jatene Marcelo B, Fontes Valmir F
Instituto Dante Pazzanese de Cardiologia, Hospital do Coração (Associação Sanatório Sírio), São Paulo, Brasil.
Rev Esp Cardiol. 2008 Dec;61(12):1342-5. doi: 10.1016/s1885-5857(09)60064-5.
Permeability of a Blalock-Taussig shunt can increase the risk of endocarditis and ventricular overload. Percutaneous embolization of these shunts gives variable results. We report our experience in 10 patients with percutaneous closure of modified Blalock-Taussig shunts using retrograde arterial embolization with Gianturco coils. The patients' median age was 2.8 years, and their median weight was 12 kg. Most patients had minor stenosis of the distal portion of the anastomosis. In all cases, complete closure of the shunt was achieved without complications using a median of one coil per patient. The technique was feasible, safe, effective, and inexpensive.
