The Ross Procedure in Children under Ten Years of Age
Nicola Vitale MD, Timothy Hornung FRCP, Giovanna Ciotti MD,
J. R. Leslie Hamilton MD, Marco Pozzi MD, Asif Hasan MD

We present a retrospective analysis of aortic root replacement with pulmonary autograft in 11 children under 10 years of age operated on for aortic valve disease. There were no operative deaths. Mean hospital stay was 12 ± 4 days; mean follow up was 14.5 ± 8 months. The event-free survival (death, reoperation, endocarditis, arrhythmia) was 100%. Currently, nine children are in NYHA functional class I, and two in class II. The autograft and homograft were evaluated by serial echocardiography. There was no increase in size of the autograft. Aortic regurgitation was trivial in four children and mild in seven. No growth of the autograft was noted; this was consistent with little somatic growth. The pulmonary autograft procedure can be safely applied in children. Early follow up indicates satisfactory performance of the autograft. If dilatation does not occur, the pulmonary root autograft may be an attractive substitute for diseased aortic valves in children.