How long do Fontan patients live?
How long do Fontan patients live?
Since Francis Fontan first described his pioneering operation in 1968, cardiac defects that were once uniformly fatal in infancy and childhood have now be palliated well into adulthood, with an overall estimated 30-year survival of over 80%.
How old is the oldest Fontan patient?
The oldest survivor after the Fontan operation was 67 years of age (Fontan at age 39 years).
What happens when a Fontan fails?
Late Fontan failure may present insidiously over years. It is a failure of medical management to interpret the absence of overt symptoms or ascites as evidence of optimal haemodynamic status in the functionally univentricular circulation.
What are Fontan associated diseases?
Fontan-associated liver disease is a hepatic disorder arising from hemodynamic changes and systemic venous congestion following Fontan surgery. The histological changes produced in the liver are similar but not equivalent to those seen in other forms of cardiac liver disease.
Can you live with only one heart valve?
The Fontan procedure has allowed more people born with only one ventricle — the lower pumping chamber of the heart — to survive into adulthood, but their unique circulatory system requires continued lifelong medical care.
When do you do the Fontan procedure?
The Fontan procedure is the third stage of the repair. It is done when the child is between 18 months and 2 years of age. A heart catheterization is done before the Fontan.
What is the life expectancy of a child with HLHS?
There are currently estimates of three- to five-year survival rates of 70% for infants who have the stage I repair. For children who survive to the age of 12 months, long-term survival is about 90 percent.
Can you live with only half a heart?
Huge challenges are faced by children born with ‘half a heart’—a condition known as hypoplastic left heart syndrome. The syndrome is a rare inherited disorder in which the left half of the heart is undersized and cannot perform its function of pumping blood to the body. Without surgery, it is fatal.
Why does Fontan cause liver damage?
Patients who undergo the Fontan operation as children for a complex congenital heart defect are at risk of developing progressive liver fibrosis, a buildup of fibrous deposits, as a result of the circulation created by the surgery, according to a new study.
What is Fontan heart surgery?
The Fontan procedure refers to any surgical procedure that leads to systemic flow of venous blood to the lungs without passing through a ventricle. In 1971, Fontan and Baudet (1) described a surgical procedure for repair of tricuspid atresia that built on experimental and clinical research from the 1940s.
How long can you live with one heart valve?
Around 75% of patients with unoperated aortic stenosis may die 3 years after the onset of symptoms. The long-term survival following surgical valve replacement in patients over 65 years of age is excellent and up to the first 8 years is comparable to the matched general population.
When do children get the Fontan heart surgery?
The last surgery in the series is the Fontan procedure. Children get this after the Glenn procedure, usually when they’re 18 to 36 months (3 years) old. Until now, blood low in oxygen from the lower part of the body has mixed with blood high in oxygen.
Why does a baby need the Fontan procedure?
Why Does a Baby Need the Fontan Procedure? Without medicines and a series of three surgeries to rebuild the heart, babies with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) won’t survive. The left side of the heart can’t be fixed, so the goal of the surgeries is to rebuild parts of the heart and “redirect” the way blood flows.
How is Fontan procedure used to treat hypoplastic left heart syndrome?
The Fontan procedure is a type of open-heart surgery. The goal is to: Make blood from the lower part of the body go directly to the lungs. This lets the blood pick up oxygen without having to pass through the heart. In babies with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, low-oxygen blood from the lower part of the body mixes with high-oxygen blood.
How long do children stay in the hospital after Fontan?
Children who have the Fontan procedure usually spend 1 to 2 weeks in the hospital to recover. They get-around-the-clock care and monitoring. They also get medicines to help the heart and improve blood flow.