Can we do without routine fenestration in extracardiac total cavopulmonary connections? Report on 84 consecutive patients

Preoperative Hemodynamics Impact the Benefit of Fenestration on Fontan Postoperative Length of Stay

BACKGROUND

Utilization of Fontan fenestration varies considerably by center.

OBJECTIVES

Using a multicenter Pediatric Heart Network dataset linking surgical and preoperative hemodynamic variables, the authors evaluated factors associated with use of Fontan fenestration and the impact of fenestration on post-Fontan length of stay (LOS).

METHODS

Patients 2 to 6 years old at Fontan surgery from 2010 to 2020 with catheterization<1 year prior were included. Factors associated with fenestration were evaluated using multivariable logistic regression adjusting for key covariates. Restrictive cubic spline analysis was used to evaluate potential cut-points for hemodynamic variables associated with longer postoperative LOS stratified by fenestration with multivariable linear regression to evaluate the magnitude of effect.

RESULTS

Fenestration was used in 465 of 702 patients (66.2%). Placement of a fenestration was associated with center (range 27%-93% use, P < 0.0001) and Fontan type (OR: 14.1 for lateral tunnel vs extracardiac conduit, P < 0.0001). No hemodynamic variable was independently associated with fenestration. In a multivariable linear model adjusting for center, a center-fenestration interaction, prematurity, preoperative mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP), and cardiac index, fenestration was associated with shorter hospital LOS after Fontan (P = 0.0024). The benefit was most pronounced at mPAP ≥13 mm Hg (median LOS: 9 vs 12 days, P = 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

There is wide center variability in use of Fontan fenestration that is not explained by preoperative hemodynamics. Fenestration is independently associated with shorter LOS, and those with mPAP ≥13 mm Hg at pre-Fontan catheterization benefit the most. We propose this threshold as minimal criteria for fenestration.

Outcomes following modified extracardiac Fontan procedure of direct total cavopulmonary connection with autologous vessels: a single-centre 10-year experience

OBJECTIVES

The modified extracardiac Fontan of direct total cavopulmonary connection (dTCPC) with entirely autologous vessels is a better solution in selected patients with functionally univentricular hearts because it combines the advantages of a tubular connection and of full growth potential. We investigated the mid-term to long-term outcomes of the physical condition of patients who had the dTCPC and assessed the growth potential of the autologous dTCPC pathway.

METHODS

From July 2005 to June 2014, 31 patients, aged 1.8-14.0 years, underwent a modified extracardiac Fontan with dTCPC at our institution. Twenty-two patients underwent a 1-stage dTCPC and 9 patients underwent a 2-stage dTCPC. The preoperative and postoperative data were reviewed retrospectively.

RESULTS

There were 17 (54.8%) boys and 14 (45.2%) girls, with a median age of 6.4 years (range 1.8-14.0 years) and a mean weight of 17.8 kg (range 9-41 kg). The mean follow-up period was 6.0 years (range 2.1-10.2 years). There was 1 early death and 2 late deaths. The event-free survival rate for the 31 patients was 88.9% at 10 years during the follow-up period. Late protein-losing enteropathy, thromboembolism, arrhythmia or heart failure were not observed. There was a significant difference between the preoperative and postoperative data for body mass index and the diameters of the autologous dTCPC pathway and pulmonary artery branches, confirming that the growth potential of the autologous dTCPC pathway was realized.

CONCLUSIONS

The dTCPC procedure could be performed with satisfactory midterm to long-term outcomes in selected patients. It has the potential of retaining the advantage of the extracardiac Fontan operation together with the potential for growth and the avoidance of prosthetic materials.

Comparison of the fenestrated and non-fenestrated Fontan procedures: A meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

The benefits of fenestration for patients undergoing Fontan procedure seem controversial at early and late postoperative stages.

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to compare the outcomes between the fenestrated and non-fenestrated Fontan procedures.

METHODS

Studies comparing the fenestrated and non-fenestrated Fontan procedures were identified by searching the PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library databases until July 2018. The assessed variables included postoperative oxygen saturation (SaO2), pulmonary artery pressure, mortality, cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) time, ventilation time, intensive care unit stay, hospital stay, chest tube duration, protein-losing enteropathy, arrhythmia, and other follow-up outcomes including reintervention, stroke/thrombosis, and peak oxygen consumption. A random-effect/fixed-effect model was used to summarize the estimates of the mean difference (MD)/odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI). Subgroup analysis stratified by early and late outcomes was performed.

RESULTS

A total of 1929 Fontan patients from 14 studies were included. The early postoperative SaO2 was lower with fenestration than without fenestration (MD -2.52, 95% CI -4.16 to -0.87, P <.05); however, the late postoperative SaO2 showed no difference between the 2 approaches. The CPB time was shorter without fenestration than with fenestration (MD 10.72, 95% CI 2.54-18.9, P <.05); however, the incidence of arrhythmia was lower with fenestration than without fenestration (OR 0.43, 95% CI 0.25-0.75, P <.05). Other variables showed no significant differences between the 2 approaches in Fontan patients.

CONCLUSION

Fenestration appears to result in a lower incidence of arrhythmia but with a longer CPB time and lower early SaO2. Other outcomes are comparable between the 2 approaches.

Easy technique for emergency fenestration in non-fenestrated Fontan patients

The Fontan procedure is a commonly used final pathway of palliation for single-ventricle physiology. Performing it without fenestration can avoid fenestration-related drawbacks, including subnormal oxygen saturation, decreased exercise tolerance, paradoxical embolization and subsequent need for closure by catheter intervention. If emergency fenestration is required, however, it is not always technically easy to perform, particularly when the atrium is posteriorly located and difficult to expose. We describe an easy technique for creating an anastomosis using a ring-supported polytetrafluoroethylene graft to the atrium for fenestration, performed in 2 patients who underwent extracardiac conduit Fontan procedures without fenestration.

Decision-Making for Surgery in the Management of Patients with Univentricular Heart

A series of technical refinements over the past 30 years, in combination with advances in perioperative management, have resulted in dramatic improvements in the survival of patients with univentricular heart. While the goal of single-ventricle palliation remains unchanged - normalization of the pressure and volume loads on the systemic ventricle, the strategies to achieve that goal have become more diverse. Optimal palliation relies on a thorough understanding of the changing physiology over the first years of life and the risks and consequences of each palliative strategy. This review describes how to optimize surgical decision-making in univentricular patients based on a current understanding of anatomy, physiology, and surgical palliation.

The Fontan pathway: What's down the road?

The Fontan circulation results from routing of the systemic venous blood to the pulmonary circulation without a hydraulic source of a ventricle. Although a hypertrophied right atrium was thought to be essential for this circulation, the current form of the operation has neither the right atrium nor any valves in the venous circulation that is connected to the pulmonary arteries directly. Modifications in the operative model was one of the early steps in improving outcome. Use of fenestration, staging of Fontan completion and better perioperative management have led to a significant drop in mortality rates in the current era. Despite this, there is late attrition of patients with complications such as arrhythmias, ventricular dysfunction, and unusual clinical syndromes of protein-losing enteropathy (PLE) and plastic bronchitis. Management of failing Fontan includes a detailed hemodynamic and imaging assessment to treat any correctable lesions such as obstruction within the Fontan circuit, early control of arrhythmia and maintenance of sinus rhythm, symptomatic treatment for PLE and plastic bronchitis, manipulation of systemic and pulmonary vascular resistance, and Fontan conversion of less favorable atriopulmonary connection to extra-cardiac total cavopulmonary connection with arrythmia surgery. Cardiac transplantation remains the only successful definitive palliation in the failing Fontan patients.

Progressive intrapulmonary shunting in a child after bidirectional Glenn operation only resolved after total cavopulmonary completion

We report on a girl with progressive intrapulmonary shunting after bidirectional Glenn (BDG) operation and resolution of these microscopic fistulas after completion to total cavopulmonary connection (TCPC).

Nonfenestrated extracardiac total cavopulmonary connection in 132 consecutive patients

BACKGROUND

The study was conducted to assess the need for fenestration for completion of a total cavopulmonary connection (TCPC) with the most recent modification of an extracardiac conduit.

METHODS

The extracardiac approach was introduced to our institution in January 1999. Between June 2000 and June 2006, 132 consecutive patients were treated without a fenestration. At the time of TCPC, the median age was 31 months (range, 16 251), with 93 patients (70%) being younger than 48 months. Median patient weight was 12.5 kg (range, 9 to 66 kg). A previous partial cavopulmonary connection (PCPC) was accomplished in 117 patients (88.6%), without additional pulmonary blood flow.

RESULTS

Thirty-day-mortality was 1.5%. Median time to extubation was 14 hours (range, 3 hours to 126 days). Initial pulmonary artery pressure value was 16.5 +/- 2.2 mm Hg, and 13.1 +/- 1.8 after extubation. Median drainage requirement was 4 days (range, 1 to 45), and median duration of hospitalization was 20 days (range, 5 to 128). Thirty-one (24%) required repeat drainage insertion. No subsequent fenestration was performed, and at hospital discharge no significant repeat effusions were observed. Multiple covariate logistic regression revealed longer time interval from PCPC to extracardiac TCPC (p = 0.006) as a significant predictor of pleural drainage lasting longer than 4 days, and older age at the time of extracardiac TCPC (p = 0.040) as a risk factor for hospitalization more than 20 days. Higher pulmonary artery pressure 3 hours postoperatively was a significant predictor for both outcome variables in the multivariate model (p = 0.013, p = 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

In general, an extracardiac TCPC can be performed without fenestration. Early staging of patients with functional single ventricle physiology may be one of the keys for these findings.