Percutaneous pulmonary valve replacement: a new development in the lifetime strategy for patients with congenital heart disease

[摘要] Advances in congenital heart surgery over the past few decades have led to increasing numbers of long-term survivors, and there are now as many adults with congenital heart disease as children. In the Netherlands the total number of patients with congenital heart disease is presently estimated to be around 50,000. The current generation of patients with repaired congenital heart disease, however, is exposed to increasing reintervention rates. Recognition of the deleterious long-term effects of the residual consequences of early repair has also contributed to a more aggressive surgical strategy. The interventional approach to the management of congenital heart disease is becoming increasingly recognised as the preferred treatment option for a wide number of congenital cardiac conditions. Nonsurgical cardiac valve replacement is one of the more exciting developments in the field of interventional cardiology. In this issue of the Netherlands Heart Journal an illustrative case report is presented of a percutaneous pulmonary valve replacement.1

[学科分类] 心脏病和心血管学