Archives des maladies du coeur et des vaisseaux
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Between July, 1967 and December, 1987, 71 children and adolescents (43 boys, 28 girls) aged from 9 days to 20 years (mean 7.8 years) underwent pacemaker implantation. In 91 p. 100 of the cases this treatment was performed for complete atrioventricular block (CAVB). Surgical CAVB was the reason for 59 p. 100 of implantations (correction of tetralogy of Fallot and, more recently, of complex cardiopathies), the second main reason (16.9 p. 100) being nonsurgical CAVB associated with heart disease; the children in this group were young (mean age 4.2 years), and the prognosis mainly depended on the heart disease. ⋯ Breakage of the wire was the main complication. Rises in threshold are the major drawback of epicardial pacing, as they require reoperation when the energy delivered cannot be effectively programmed. Endocardial pacing, preferably with a dual-chamber instrument, seems to be the best method, being the least aggressive, with minimal complications in short and very long term; it is justified as first-line treatment of permanent or predominant CAVB.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)