Does a ventricular septal defect require open chest surgery?
Ventricular septal defects (VSD) can generally be treated through interventional procedures. Normally, defects with a diameter smaller than 3mm do not require surgical treatment. If the diameter is greater than 3mm but less than 10mm, interventional treatment is often feasible. Another scenario involves the subarterial type of defect, which generally cannot be repaired via a catheter-based approach and requires open-chest surgery instead. Additionally, for very large defects, repair must be conducted through open-chest surgery. Thus, for VSD, there are two main treatment options. Specific decisions require echocardiography to analyze the size and location of the septal defect to determine whether open chest surgery is necessary. Generally, most cases can be resolved through minimally invasive interventional methods.
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