Abstract
Introduction:
Pulmonary artery banding (PA banding) is a crucial bridge for single ventricle and biventricular pathologies, providing hope and a pathway to definitive surgical solutions. This seemingly simple and short surgery without using cardiopulmonary bypass, however, carries high stakes due to the significant impact it can have on patient outcomes. In the scope of our study, we sought to examine the potential correlation between perioperative NT-proBNP levels and early postoperative outcomes, intending to ascertain whether these perioperative values could serve as predictors of early postoperative outcomes.
Material and methods:
The study involved patients who had PA banding surgery from May 2023 to April 2024 (Median age 126 days; Range 47–365 days) Pro NT BNP levels were measured before and after surgery at 2, 24, and 48 hours in the ICU. The study focused on early postoperative outcomes, including ventilation duration, ICU and hospital stay lengths, pulmonary artery band gradient, reexploration, and mortality.
Results:
After the surgical procedure, we observed a significant increase in pro-NT BNP levels, with a peak at 24 hours with a median value of 17413.6 pg/ml, followed by a gradual decrease over the next 48 hours. This rise was associated with a prolonged duration of ventilation and stay in the ICU (p < 0.05), indicating that higher pro-NT BNP levels may be indicative of a more complicated postoperative course. However, there was no statistically significant impact observed on the length of hospital stay or the maximum gradient across the pulmonary artery band (p > 0.05).
Conclusion:
Our research has demonstrated that serum NT-proBNP levels can be a valuable indicator of early morbidity in patients undergoing pulmonary artery banding. These findings could potentially lead to the development of new strategies for patient management and care in the field of pediatric cardiac surgery.