[Current Surgical Treatment for Patients with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, from the Viewpoint of Emergent Operation].

The treatment of hypoplastic left heart syndrome has improved dramatically with the development of treatment strategies due to improved understanding of hemodynamics, improved surgical methods, and the widespread use of fetal diagnosis. However, cases of early closure of the foramen ovale require emergency surgery immediately after birth, and further improvement of treatment results is needed. The right ventricular pulmonary artery shunt reported from Japan is well known worldwide and has greatly contributed to improved outcomes up to six months after the Norwood procedure. Also contributing to the improved results of the Norwood procedure is the widespread use of bilateral pulmonary artery banding to avoid palliative open heart surgery in the neonatal period. Although this method is widely used in Japan, there is still room for improvement in such areas as postoperative left pulmonary artery stenosis and aortic arch reconstruction after stenting of the ductus arteriosus. Now that the results of the Norwood procedure have stabilized, there is a need to improve treatment methods to establish a better Fontan circulation in the future.