Partial hepatic vein diversion in pulmonary arteriovenous malformations in congenital heart disease

Arterial desaturation due to pulmonary arteriovenous malformations after the Kawashima Operation

Arterial desaturation may occur after the Kawashima procedure and, in the absence of venovenous collaterals is usually due to pulmonary arteriovenous malformations. Stenting of the pulmonary arteries, oxygen therapy, and pulmonary vasodilators such as sildenafil have not been able to resolve the arterial desaturation and the only way to do this has been Fontan completion. The time course of the formation of these malformations after the Kawashima and the progression of cyanosis and its resolution after the Fontan has only been demonstrated in case reports and small case series. We pool the available data to model arterial saturations in patients with pulmonary arteriovenous malformations after the Kawashima procedure.

Pulmonary Arteriovenous Malformations in Dyskeratosis Congenita

Pulmonary arteriovenous malformations (PAVMs) are rare lesions known to cause cyanosis due to abnormal communication between the pulmonary arteries and veins. They are commonly seen in association with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia, congenital heart disease, hepatopulmonary syndrome, and portopulmonary shunting, but rarely in patients with dyskeratosis congenita (DC). We describe a patient previously diagnosed with DC confirmed to have microscopic PAVMs after bone marrow transplantation and discuss possible pathogenic mechanisms.

Normal and abnormal pulmonary arteriovenous shunting: occurrence and mechanisms

Severe cyanosis due to pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas occurs often after a bidirectional superior cavopulmonary anastomosis (Glenn operation) and also in some congenital anomalies in which hepatic venous blood bypasses the lungs in the first passage. Relocation of hepatic flow into the lungs usually causes these fistulas to disappear. Similar pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas are observed in hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia, and in liver disease (hepatopulmonary syndrome). There is no convincing identification yet of a responsible hepatic factor that produces these lesions. Candidates for such a factor are reviewed, and the possibility of angiotensin or bradykinin contributing to the fistulas is discussed.

Progressive cyanosis following Kawashima operation: slow resolution after redirection of hepatic veins

Progressive cyanosis often develops following Kawashima operation in patients with left atrial isomerism, interrupted inferior vena cava and hepatic veins draining to the atria. Knowledge on the timing and extend of resolution following hepatic venous redirection is sparse. A girl developed progressing cyanosis following Kawashima operation at the age of ten months. Arterial oxygen saturations at rest dropped to 60-65%. Surgical redirection of hepatic veins into the cavopulmonary circulation at the age of three years had no immediate effect. However, arterial oxygen saturations increased gradually over nine months to 90-93% and 95-100% after three years.