Traumatic ventricular septal defect: a case of early repair and review of the literature.

: We present a case of traumatic ventricular septal defect following a stab wound of the heart. The patient was operated on within the first 24 hours after being injured, because the hemodynamic situation had deteriorated; he is well 31 months postoperatively. From the literature reviewed, it is apparent that most of such lesions should be corrected early, since these patients are exposed to the continued risk of symptomatic cardiac dysfunction, and repair offers an excellent prognosis with minimal morbidity.