The Surgical Treatment of Ventricular Septal Defect with Aortic Insufficiency, with Special Emphasis on Valve Replacement

The surgical treatment in 4 patients with ventricular septal defect associated with aortic insufficiency is described. The closure of ventricular septal defect by itself improved the degree of aortic regurgitation in 2 moderately severe cases. However, aortic insufficiency could not be controlled by the closure in 2 severe cases, and aortic valve replacement was performed with a Starr-Edwards aortic prosthesis with one success. Our concepts regarding indication for operation and principle of operative procedure were presented.