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(Circulation. 1999;100:II-176.)
© 1999 American Heart Association, Inc.

Surgery for Congenital Heart Disease

Comparison of Long-Term Outcomes of Atrial Repair of Simple Transposition With Implications for a Late Arterial Switch Strategy

David Sarkar, MRCP; Catherine Bull, FRCP; Robert Yates, MRCP; David Wright, PhD; Seamus Cullen, MRCP; Marc Gewillig, MD; Rebecca Clayton, ASCT; Adelaide Tunstill, RSCN; John Deanfield, FRCP

From the Department of Clinical Pharmacology, University College London, London, England (D.S.); Department of Pediatric Cardiology, Great Ormond Street Hospital, London, England (C.B., R.Y., S.C., R.C., A.T., J.D.); Department of Statistical Sciences, University College London, London, England (D.W.); and Department of Pediatric Cardiology, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Leuven University, Leuven, Belgium (M.G.).

Correspondence to Professor J. Deanfield, Department of Pediatric Cardiology, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, Great Ormond Street, London, WCIN 3JH England. E-mail d.sarkar{at}ucl.ac.uk

Background—We report the single-institution, long-term results of 358 patients with simple transposition of the great arteries surviving >30 days after a Mustard (n=226, 1965 to 1980) or Senning (n=132, 1978 to 1992) procedure.

Methods and Results—Outcome measures included late death, reintervention, ECG and ambulatory ECG rhythm, new arrhythmia, and functional status. Average follow-up was 13.4 (range 0.32 to 17.9) years for the Senning group and 11.7 (range 0.04 to 23.9) years for the Mustard group. The Senning group had a better survival rate at 5, 10, and 15 years (95% versus 86%, 94% versus 82%, and 94% versus 77%, respectively). In both groups, the majority of late deaths were sudden, without preceding ventricular dysfunction. Survival and survival free of reintervention were significantly better in the Senning group (relative risk [RR] 0.34, P=0.06 versus RR 0.39, P=0.027). Loss of sinus rhythm was comparable and unrelated to death. After era correction, the incidence of atrial flutter was similar and strongly associated with late death in both groups. Clinical systemic ventricular failure was uncommon, and at last follow-up, 92% of the Senning group and 89% of the Mustard group were in New York Heart Association class I. In a model exploring the implications of elective arterial switch conversion, this would only be beneficial if the hazard late after switch was markedly reduced and/or the hazard after the Senning procedure increased with time.

Conclusions—Late outcomes after the Senning procedure are superior to those after the Mustard procedure. Both groups had late sudden deaths that were not associated with clinical systemic ventricular failure. Good functional status after the Senning procedure suggests that a strategy of elective switch conversion cannot be justified for patients with isolated transposition.

Key Words: transposition of great vessels • heart defects, congenital • survival • death, sudden • atrial flutter