Interrupted Aortic Arch Treatment & Management

  • Author: Alvin J Chin, MD; Chief Editor: Steven R Neish, MD, SM   more...
 
Updated: Nov 7, 2011
 

Medical Care

  • Evaluation of interrupted aortic arch (IAA) as an inpatient in an intensive care setting is advised.
  • Intravenous prostaglandin E1 is indicated promptly to maintain patency of the ductus arteriosus.
  • The need for an arterial line and assisted ventilation can be judged best from the initial ABG measurement.
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Surgical Care

  • The arch interruption itself is usually treated with side-to-side anastomosis, rather than with conduit interposition. If the subaortic region is of good size, the ventricular septal defect is usually closed with a patch at the same occasion.
  • When a malalignment-type ventricular septal defect is present, the infundibular septum is not only misplaced but is also frequently hypoplastic. Hence, significant subaortic narrowing is frequently difficult to ameliorate with mere resection of infundibular septal muscle.
  • Two alternative approaches have been adopted: the Ross-Konno procedure and the Norwood-Rastelli procedure.
    • In the Ross-Konno procedure, the aortic outflow region is directly enlarged (Konno) and the aortic valve is replaced with a pulmonary valve autograft (Ross).[38] The coronary arterial ostia must be relocated to the autograft, and some sort of right ventricle–to–main pulmonary artery conduit is interposed (Ross). One relative contraindication to the Ross-Konno procedure is an unfavorable coronary artery pattern because this may well limit the efficacy of the Konno procedure.
    • In the Norwood-Rastelli procedure, an interventricular baffle allows left ventricular blood to reach not only the aortic outflow but also the pulmonary annulus (Rastelli), and the main pulmonary artery is transected.[39] The proximal portion is anastomosed to the ascending aorta (Norwood) while the distal portion is connected to the right ventricle via a conduit (Rastelli).
  • A recent study reported the successful use of a regional cerebral perfusion technique to correct interrupted aortic arch.[40]
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Consultations

  • Cardiothoracic surgeon
  • Cardiologist
  • Geneticist
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Diet

  • No special diet is required.
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Activity

  • No exercise restrictions are necessary in later childhood if coexistent subaortic (and/or aortic) hypoplasia has been sufficiently relieved in earlier childhood.
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Contributor Information and Disclosures
Author

Alvin J Chin, MD  Professor of Pediatrics, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine; Attending Physician, Cardiology Division, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

Alvin J Chin, MD, is a member of the following medical societies: American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Heart Association, and Society for Developmental Biology

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Specialty Editor Board

Charles I Berul, MD  Professor of Pediatrics and Integrative Systems Biology, George Washington University School of Medicine; Chief, Division of Cardiology, Children's National Medical Center

Charles I Berul, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Cardiology, American Heart Association, Cardiac Electrophysiology Society, Heart Rhythm Society, Pediatric and Congenital Electrophysiology Society, and Society for Pediatric Research

Disclosure: Johnson & Johnson Consulting fee Consulting

Mary L Windle, PharmD  Adjunct Associate Professor, University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Pharmacy; Editor-in-Chief, Medscape Drug Reference

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Ameeta Martin, MD  Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Pediatric Cardiology, University of Nebraska College of Medicine

Ameeta Martin, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American College of Cardiology

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Gilbert Z Herzberg, MD  Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Section of Pediatric Cardiology, New York Medical College; Consulting Staff, Department of Pediatrics, Sound Shore Medical Center

Gilbert Z Herzberg, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Pediatrics

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Chief Editor

Steven R Neish, MD, SM  Director of Pediatric Cardiology Fellowship Program, Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine

Steven R Neish, MD, SM is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Cardiology, and American Heart Association

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

References

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Suprasternal echocardiographic identification of interrupted aortic arch Type B. Upper left: Frontal (coronal) view showing the takeoffs of the innominate artery (InnA) and left common carotid artery (LCCA). No connection is seen with the distal aorta. Upper right: Slightly more dorsal (posterior) frontal view showing the main pulmonary artery (MPA), large left-sided patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), and left-sided upper descending aorta (DescAo). The ascending aorta (AscAo) is not in discernible continuity with the descending aorta. Lower left: Left oblique view showing the LCCA takeoff and no discernible aortic arch. Lower right: sagittal view showing the origin of the left subclavian artery (LSCA) from the DescAo. Other Abbreviations: InnV= innominate vein; l=left; LPA=left pulmonary artery; p,l = posterior and leftward; s=superior; SVC=superior vena cava.
Section A depicts a subcostal frontal echocardiogram of interrupted aortic arch (IAA) type B with transposition of the great arteries. Section B shows a high parasternal echocardiogram showing that the innominate artery (Inn A) and left common carotid artery (LCCA) arise from the ascending aorta (a ao). In section C, the left subclavian artery (LSCA) arises from the descending aorta (desc ao), which is perfused by the ductus arteriosus.
This is the suprasternal sagittal ultrasonographic view of the patient shown in Media file 2. Arch continuity has now been restored by a side-to-side anastomosis. Abbreviations are as follows: a ao = ascending aorta and desc ao = descending aorta.
 
 
 
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