Current Management of Anomalous Aortic Origin of a Coronary Artery: A Pan-Canadian Survey.

backgroundAnomalous aortic origin of a coronary artery (AAOCA) is a significant cause of sudden cardiac death (SCD) in children and adolescents. The natural history of AAOCA and the pathophysiology of AAOCA-related SCD are poorly understood. Therefore, the evaluation and management of AAOCA remain controversial. This survey-based study aims to report the current AAOCA management tendencies in Canada.

methodsWe built a 23-question survey on AAOCA. Questions pertained to patient presentation, investigations, morphology of the anomaly, management, and follow-up. We sent the survey to all the Canadian congenital cardiac surgeons, pediatric cardiologists, and adult congenital cardiologists. Data were anonymized and analysis was performed using descriptive statistics.

resultsAccording to our survey participants (N = 47), patient age (94%) and amount of physical activity (60%) are the most influential factors when deciding whether to offer surgical correction. Aborted SCD, exercise-induced syncope, typical chest pain, and left jaw or arm pain are the most important clinical presentations indicating surgery. The most commonly used preoperative investigations are rest echocardiography (75%), electrocardiogram (68%), and exercise stress test (62%). Most respondents favor the unroofing procedure (78%) for surgical correction. For nonsurgical candidates, most physicians choose competitive exercise restriction (64%).

conclusionWe found a divergence between current practices and expert consensus guidelines regarding the treatment of asymptomatic left AAOCA with high-risk features. Our survey also revealed a lack of consensus among clinicians regarding the management of asymptomatic patients, very young patients, and those with right-sided AAOCA. Evidence-based criteria derived from sufficiently powered studies remain to be established to standardize AAOCA treatment.