Clinical outcomes of surgically corrected atrial septal defects

Objective: To examine the outcomes of surgical repair of atrial septal defects in paediatric and adult patients. Methods: The retrospective study comprised data of 84 patients who had undergone surgical correction of atrial septal defect at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, between June 2006 and December 2011. All patients with isolated atrial septal defect (ostium secundum, ostium primum and sinus venosus with or without partial anomalous pulmonary venous connection) were included. Clinical and transthoracic echocardiographic data was reviewed. SPSS 17 was used for statistical analysis. Results: There were no deaths in the study population. The mean time for follow-up was 6.5±9.9 months. Most of the patients (n=80; 95.2%) were in New York Heart Association class I at follow-up, while the remaining 4(4.8%) were in New York Heart Association class II. Post-operatively, 8 (9.5%) patients developed brief episodes of arrhythmias. There were 3 (3.57%) patients who were re-admitted within 30 days; 2 (66.7%) had superficial wound infection, while 1 (33.3%) had to be re-opened because of cardiac tamponade. Conclusion: Surgical repair of atrial septal defects is a safe procedure which is associated with excellent results and low morbidity.