Successful Repair of Adult Type II Aortopulmonary Window using Dual Patch Technique

Abstract

Background Aortopulmonary window (APW) is one of the rarest congenital cardiac defects with an incidence of 0.2–0.3% of all cardiac malformations. Patients who present in adulthood with this condition are usually in Eisenmenger syndrome and are inoperable. We present the rare case of an adult with APW with severe pulmonary hypertension who was operable on investigation and successfully treated. Case Presentation A 24 year old female diagnosed with an aortopulmonary window in childhood presented with progressive shortness of breath over the past 6 years. Her clinical examination and investigation revealed a large aortopulmonary window. Cardiac catheterization was done to evaluate the operability of this case and revealed a reversible shunt. The patient underwent successful repair using a double autologous pericardial patch technique. Conclusions Operable aortopulmonary window in an adult is a rare presentation. This report presents the successful repair of aortopulmonary window in an adult.