Cerebrovascular abnormalities in postoperative coarctation of aorta. Four cases demonstrating left subclavian steal on aortography.

Fifteen children, aged 0.3 to 10.5 years (mean 3.8 years) after repair of coarctation of the aorta, underwent cerebral arteriography as part of postoperative catheterization. Four manifested central nervous system symptoms postoperative catheterization. Four manifested central nervous system symptoms postoperatively: Two had persistent headaches, one had exercise-induced hemianopsia and one had major motor seizures. All four had greater blood pressure in the right arm than in the left and evidence of subclavian steal, with retrograde filling of the left vertebral and left subclavian arteries on selective right vertebral arteriography. Ligation of the left vertebral artery in three patients and left subclavian graft arterioplasty in one resulted in disappearance of symptoms. None of the 11 asymptomatic patients manifested cerebrovascular anomalies, and no patient in the series had berry aneurysm. This study suggests that patients with central nervous system symptoms and a disparity of blood pressure in the arms after surgery for coarctation of the aorta should be evaluated carefully to exclude subclavian steal as the cause of the symptoms.