Background: Vascular rings are uncommon anomalies in which preferred strategies for diagnosis and management may vary among institutions. In this study, we reported our approach and a review of our 5-year experience.
Methods: From May 2006 to April 2011, 45 children (31 boys) with vascular rings underwent surgical repair at Beijing Children's Hospital. Nineteen patients (26%) had associated heart anomalies.
Results: There were two hospital deaths. At follow-up, 11 patients still had intermittent respiratory symptoms, but these symptoms had no effect on growth or physical activities. No patients required reoperation.
Conclusions: The rates of misdiagnosis and missed diagnosis of vascular rings are higher than those of other congenital heart diseases. A high index of clinical suspicion coupled with the use of computed tomography enables early diagnosis. Surgical repair can be performed successfully, although a number of patients will have persistent symptoms.