Surgical treatment of cor triatriatum.

Six patients with cor triatriatum underwent surgical correction. They ranged for 1.5 to 93 months old (mean, 22 months). Congestive heart failure was present in 3 patients. Cardiomegaly and increased pulmonary vascularity were evident roentgenographically in all patients. Cardiac cineangiography demonstrated the subdividing left atrial membrane in 5 patients and suggested the correct diagnosis by revealing an abnormal configuration of the left atrium in the other patient. The opening in the anomalous left atrial membrane was stenotic in every instance. The proximal left atrial chamber communicated with the right atrium through an atrial septal defect in 5 patients and with the systemic venous circuit through a persistent left superior vena cava in the other patient, in whom the atrial septum was intact. A right atrial-transseptal approach provided ample exposure for complete excision of the obstructing membrane and repair of the atrial septum in all patients. One patient died of low cardiac output during the early postoperative period. The other 5 are alive and well at an average of 48 months after operation.