EFFECTS OF INHALED NITRIC-OXIDE ON POSTOPERATIVE PULMONARY CIRCULATION IN PATIENTS WITH CONGENITAL HEART-DISEASE

We studied 22 patients with residual pulmonary hypertension or symptom s of postoperative pulmonary hypertensive crisis. They received low-do se inhalation (10 ppm) of nitric oxide (NO), a selective pulmonary vas odilator, after total correction for congenital heart anomalies. Fifte en minutes of NO inhalation improved the pulmonary circulation and les sened the imbalance in the ventilation-perfusion ratio in both groups. Thus, NO inhalation is effective in the treatment of pulmonary hypert ension and in the prevention of pulmonary hypertensive crises after to tal correction for congenital heart anomalies. All patients continued to receive NO therapeutically. The duration of such therapeutic NO inh alation was well correlated with postoperative Qp/Qs (p = 0.014) and R p/Rs (p = 0.029).