SURGICAL-TREATMENT OF THE WOLFF-PARKINSON-WHITE SYNDROME

The paper presents the data on 365 operations to arrest the Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which were performed in the period of 1973 to July 1989 in the Clinical Hospital, University of Kanazava. The authors were the first to apply an endocardial access to remove Kent's bundle. They obtained the following results: later on 344 of 365 patients undergone surgery had no recurrent tachycardias. Incomplete abolition was observed in 21 patients, but relapses of tachycardias were absent. A total of 11 patients died within 1 to 32 days of postsurgery. The authors have noted that they achieved 100 % positive results in the last series of 101 operations: there was no relapse of tachycardias, repeated operations, atrioventricular block and deaths. At present, the surgical technique for arresting the WPW syndrome has some advantage over drug therapy. The operation fully makes the patient recovered, while with conservative therapy he has to be on drugs during his life.