Does the technique of interventional closure of perimembranous ventricular septal defect reduce the incidence of heart block?

Objective: To describe the difficulties and differing techniques in the transcatheter placement of amplatz ventricular septal defect devices to close perimembranous ventricular septal defects and place these in the context of the expanding literature on ventricular septal defect catheter closure.

Background: Surgery remains the established first-line therapy for closure of haemodynamically significant perimembranous ventricular septal defects. Transcatheter techniques appeared to promise a possible alternative, obviating the need for cardiac surgery.