Intraoperative epicardial echography in infancy and childhood for the evaluation of the results of surgical correction of congenital heart defects

: Intraoperative epicardial echocardiography (IEE) is very useful to assess the result of the surgical procedure. In infancy and childhood the authors performed 32 IEE (using high frequency transducer) out of 193 operations with congenital heart diseases. As a result of IEE study the surgical procedure was extended in 5 cases, as follows: closure of patent ductus arteriosus, exchange of transanular patch, repeated mitral repair, prosthetic mitral valve implantation, and correction of residual right to left shunt. No early or late reoperation was necessary in the remaining cases. Follow up echocardiography and autopsy in 4 cases confirmed the diagnosis of the IEE. The results suggest, that IEE will be the standard method for quality control of surgical procedures in congenital heart disease.