Long-Term (10 to 13 Years) Follow-Up Study after Transventricular Pulmonary Valvulotomy for Pulmonary Stenosis with Intact

IN THE LAST 15 years surgical methods for the relief of the pulmonic obstruction in patients with pulmonary stenosis and in-tact ventricular septum have been success-fully developed.1-6 Although the open-heart technic with the use of cardiopulmonary by-pass is today the procedure of choice, the classic Brock's transventricular valvulotomy is still preferred for small infants.7-9 The final conclusion as to the respective advan-tages and disadvantages of these procedures cannot be reached without long-term follow-up of the operated patients. The purpose of this study is to present an evaluation of 46 patients, 10 to 13 years, following transven-tricular pulmonary valvulotomy for pulmo-nary valvular stenosis with intact ventricular septum. Material Fifty-three consecutive patients with valvular pulmonary stenosis and intact ventricular septum were submitted to transventricular valvulotomy at the Johns Hopkins Hospital between November 1949 and January 1952. Forty-six patients sur-vived the operation and are the subject of the present report. There were 18 males and 28 fe-males in this group. At the time of surgery their ages ranged between 6 months and 33 years, the mean age being 11 years and the median 8.8 years. The age distribution is shown in table 1. Valvular pulmonary stenosis was the only known cardiac malformation present in these patients with the exception of one with an associated atrial septal defect and of three patients who subsequently were found to have an associated infundibula