[Anatomical correction of transposition of great vessels. Considerations on the first 50 patients operated on and analysis of the surgical choice].

After having adopted the arterial switch operation as an alternative to the Mustard operation we decided to review our results with this protocol in order to evaluate the validity of our choice. From June 1984 to Oct. 1989 a total of 50 patients underwent an arterial switch operation in our department: 36 (72%) with simple transposition of the great arteries and an essentially intact ventricular septum; 9 (18%) with transposition of the great arteries and ventricular septal defect and 5 (10%) with the Taussing-Bing anomaly. In the group with simple transposition, the age ranged between 3 and 24 days (mean 8.7 +/- 4.3 S.D.) and the weight was between 2.4 and 4.9 kg (mean: 3.46 +/- 0.42 S.D.). In the group with transposition of the great arteries and ventricular septal defect the age ranged between 7 and 690 days (mean: 194 +/- 206 S.) and the weight was between 3.1 and 9.7 kg (mean 6 +/- 2.34 S.D.). In the group with Taussig-Bing anomaly the age ranged between 9 and 216 days (means: 132 +/- 75 S.D.) and the weight was between 3.2 and 5.1 kg (mean: 4.1 +/- 0.75 S.D.). A balloon atrial septostomy was performed in 43 (86%) patients. The Lecompte manoeuvre was adopted in 49 (98%) patients. The total early mortality was 10% (5/50). In the 36 neonates with simple transposition of the great arteries, 4 (11.1%) died. Among the 14 patients with transposition of the great arteries and ventricular septal defect and Taussig-Bing anomaly there was 1 (7.1%) death. There was also 1 (2.2%) late death.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)