Corrected Transposition of the Great Arteries
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C. Alva-Espinosa: Corrected transposition of the great arteries Contents available at PubMed www.anmm.org.mx PERMANYER Gac Med Mex. 2016;152:357-65 www.permanyer.com GACETA MÉDICA DE MÉXICO REVIEW ARTICLE Corrected transposition of the great arteries Carlos Alva-Espinosa* Planning, Teaching and Research, Hospital Regional de Alta Especialidad Ixtapaluca, Ixtapaluca, Méx., Mexico Abstract Corrected transposition of the great arteries is one of the most fascinating entities in congenital heart disease. The apparent corrected condition is only temporal. Over time, most patients develop systemic heart failure, even in the absence of associated lesions. With current imaging studies, precise visualization is achieved in each case though the treatment strategy remains unresolved. In asymptomatic patients or cases without associated lesions, focalized follow-up to assess systemic ventricular function and the degree of tricuspid valve regurgitation is important. In cases with normal ventricular function and mild tricuspid failure, it seems unreasonable to intervene surgically. In patients with significant associated lesions, surgery is indicated. In the long term, the traditional approach may not help tricuspid regurgitation and systemic ventricular failure. Anatomical correction is the proposed alternative to ease the right ventricle overload and to restore the systemic left ventricular function. However, this is a prolonged operation and not without risks and long-term complications. In this review the clinical, diagnostic, and therapeutic aspects are overviewed in the light of the most significant and recent literature. (Gac Med Mex. 2016;152:357-65) Corresponding author: Carlos Alva-Espinosa, [email protected] KEY WORDS: Corrected transposition of the great arteries. Double discordance. Anatomic correction. Double switch. that characterizes this condition: an atrioventricular ntroduction I discordance combined with ventriculoarterial discor- dance, and second, because caval venous return flow Corrected transposition of the great arteries is one is correctly carried to the lungs, whereas pulmonary of the most fascinating entities in congenital heart dis- veins-originating oxygenated blood reaches the aorta ease. When a doctor sees for the first time a patient or and systemic circulation without any problem (Fig. 1). a heart where the morphological right atrium is con- This situation of apparently “corrected” transposition nected with the left ventricle (LV) and this in turn with goes on with no problem at least for the first decades the pulmonary artery, while the left atrium is communi- of life, as long as there are no associated lesions. Things cated with the right ventricle (RV) and this in turn with are, of course, more complex. Most cases have associ- the aorta, he/she cannot be less than surprised. First, ated lesions, which will determine the clinical presenta- due to the magnitude of alterations in the connections tion, and having the RV supporting systemic circulation of cardiac segments: we are facing the discordances carries, over time, ventricular failure in most cases. Correspondence: *Carlos Alva-Espinosa Dirección de Enseñanza e Investigación Hospital Regional de Alta Especialidad Ixtapaluca Carretera Federal México – Puebla Km. 34.5 Pueblo de Zoquiapen, C.P. 56530, Ixtapaluca, Méx., México Date of reception: 04-03-2015 E-mail: [email protected] Date of acceptance: 06-04-2015 357 Gaceta Médica de México. 2016;152 l d k g h l c f a b e Figure 1. Drawing where the double discordance in situs solitus is visualized. The atria are recognized by the morphology of their au- ricles: the right one, broad-based, and the left one, narrow and with an irregular, scallop shape. The left ventricle with smooth endocar- dium and the right with thick trabecula. Observe that the great arte- Figure 2. Original drawing of a corrected transposition in situs soli- ries do not cross but emerge in parallel, where the aorta appears tus made by Rokitansky in 1875. It is a cross-sectional cut at the left and straight. By virtue of the double discordance, circulations level of the atrioventricular valves. The right ventricle (A) is observed have a normal course. RA: right atrium; LV: left ventricle; LA: left to be dilated, (B) Tricuspid valve, supporting the aorta (C), (D) atrium; P: pulmonary artery; A: aorta. Aorta, (E) Left ventricle and left with normal size (F), and in relation to the pulmonary artery (G). The view is very much alike to that obtained with bi-dimensional echocardiography. In this review, we will analyze all these aspects with more detail, with particular emphasis on clinical mani- aorta in “L position”, such as the RV double outflow festations, diagnosis, prognosis and treatment. way. Therefore, the accurate form is to describe it as atrioventricular (AV) and ventriculoarterial discordance History in situs solitus or inversus and then the associated lesions, without forgetting the position of the heart with- The first known description of corrected transposition of in the thorax, as we will address later. the great arteries (CTGA) was made by baron von Roki- tansky in 1875 with a very beautiful illustration (Fig. 2), Etiology where both discordances can be appreciated in situs solitus. Since then, an elevated number of CTGA cas- The etiology of this malformation is unknown; howev- es and all type of associated lesions have been de- er, the L-loop during embryogenesis is known to be scribed and documented. determinant in ventricular inversion and it is responsi- ble for the presence of double discordance. There is Nomenclature predominance in the male gender in a 1.6 to 1 ratio. In this article, when it reads LV, we always refer to Frequency the morphological left ventricle, the same way than when it reads RV, reference is being made to the mor- CTGA affects from 0.4 to 1% of all children with phological right ventricle, regardless of their spatial congenital heart disease1-4 but it is likely to be under- situation within the thorax. estimated, since those with no associated lesions usu- On the other hand, although CTGA is referred to ally have clinical manifestations at older ages and in rather frequently as “L” transposition due to its location some cases they may not show manifestations of this left to the aorta in the frontal projection, this is inaccu- heart condition and die of other cause. In approximate- rate, since situs inversus CTGA itself has the aorta at ly 80 to 95% of the cases it occurs in situs solitus and the right and other complex pathologies can have the in 5 to 20% in situs inversus5-7. 358 C. Alva-Espinosa: Corrected transposition of the great arteries whereas the His bundle is longer, with a trajectory anterior to the infundibular septum that predisposes to atrioventricular block, as we will see in the clinical section10,11. The aortic annulus, supported by the morphological right ventricle infundibulum is located up and to the right, giving rise to a straight, ascending and left aorta. Practically any known associated lesion in patients with concordant hearts can occur in CTGA (Fig. 3); however, there are some lesions and combinations thereof that are characteristic: the combination of ven- tricular septal defect with pulmonary stenosis (Fig. 4) and tricuspid lesion with regurgitation is a characteris- tic triad of CTGA12-14. Figure 3. Specimen showing atrioventricular discordance and, as If we analyze the lesions separately, the most com- associated lesion, a complete atrioventricular septal defect can be mon lesion is interventricular communication (IVC), observed. A common atrioventricular valve riding on the interventri- which is present in at least 80% of cases15; usually, it cular septum is appreciated. LA: left atrium, LV: left ventricle, RA: right atrium, RV: right ventricle. is perimembranous, but it can be found at any site or it can be multiple. Pulmonary obstruction is observed in 40 to 70%16; characteristically, it is a subpulmonary Anatomical characteristics obstruction by accessory tissue (Fig. 4), but it may be and associated lesions combined with stenosis at the valvular level. Pulmonary atresia has been found in 8% of cases17. Tricuspid Notably, in most cases, the interventicular septum anomalies are universal in autopsy cases and, clinical- has a sagittal orientation with the ventricles at both ly, at least one third of patients have significant tricus- sides in hearts that tend to mesocardia within the thorax pid insufficiency18. Aortic insufficiency has been re- (Fig. 3), but the cardiac shape can appear in levo- or ported in approximately 30% of cases19. Of course, dextrocardia8,9. CTGA is also accompanied by interatrial communica- The pulmonary ring is wedged onto the center of the tion (IAC) or patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), either in heart between the mitral and tricuspid annulus and isolated form or associated with important lesions such therefore the membranous septum has a larger area, as IVC, pulmonary stenosis and tricuspid insufficiency. Figure 4. A: specimen with CTGA. This view corresponds to the morphological left ventricle. Smooth septum and fine trabecula are appre- ciated. Observe a restrictive subpulmonary interventricular communication (asterisk). B: closer view of the same specimen. Subpulmonary obstruction pointed by vertical arrows and, in dotted line, the route of the conduction tissue across the anterior and superior margin of the septal defect. RA: right atrium; LV: left ventricle (adapted from Alva C. et al.)20 359 Gaceta Médica de México. 2016;152 Coronary circulation originates in the sinuses of Val- A large number of patients without associated le- salva posterior to the aorta. In situs solitus, the left sions initiate their deterioration with the presence of coronary artery arises from the right one and irrigates tricuspid insufficiency, which determines volume over- the LV with its usual pattern, whereas the right coro- load, annular dilatation and further insufficiency. This nary artery arises from the left one and is normally vicious circle precipitates ventricular failure of the sys- distributed across the RV.