It is rare for adults to undergo initial surgical repair of tetralogy of Fallot. However, most patients will need additional procedures over the course of their adult lives.
This treatment is an open-heart surgery that involves closing the ventricular septal defect for patients who have never had this operation or who only had a shunt operation as a child.
This is a less invasive surgery that provides temporary blood flow between a cardiac artery and the pulmonary valve. While this procedure is usually done in children as a placeholder until a complete repair can be done, it is occasionally done in adults for the same reason.
Often, the surgical widening of the pulmonary valve you received as a child can lead to a leaky valve (also called regurgitation). Many patients benefit from a minimally invasive surgery called transcatheter pulmonary valve insertion.
Some patients may need other procedures to treat problems, such as implanting a defibrillator to treat arrhythmia.
