[Blalock-Taussig shunts in infants less than 6 months of age with special reference to the long-term administration of prostaglandin E1].

Classical Blalock-Taussig (B-T) shunt operation was performed in 14 neonates (group N) and 22 infants (group P). A mean age of group N patients was thirteen days and that of group P patients was two months. Preoperatively prostaglandin E1 (PGE1) was administered in all patients and was continued for a mean of 7 days (range 2 hours to 21 days) in group N, and a mean of 78 days (range 42 to 158 days) in group P. Body weight (4359 +/- 339 g), size of subclavian artery (3.7 +/- 0.5 mm in diameter) and size of pulmonary artery (6.4 +/- 1.2 mm in diameter) at operation of group P patients were larger than those (3212 +/- 490 g, 3.4 +/- 0.4 mm, 5.1 +/- 1.3 mm) of group N. But there were no differences in operation time (165 +/- 22 minutes in group N vs 174 +/- 25 minutes in group P) and clamp time of pulmonary artery (31 +/- 10 minutes in group N vs 30 +/- 5 minutes in group P) between 2 groups. There was no operative death in both groups. There were one late death in group N and three late death in group P. Five patients in group N and nine patients in group P required additional B-T shunt at the mean follow up interval of two years.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)