Brain abscess seven years after a Potts anastomosis in case of tetralogy of Fallot.

Abstract

The predilection of patients with tetralogy of Fallot to develop brain abscess is well established. In a review of the literature concerning the association of brain abscess with congenital heart disease, Gluck and co-workers 1 were able to find reports of 20 cases of brain abscess associated with tetralogy of Fallot. Clark and Clarke 2 reported 19 additional cases, in several of which brain abscess was discovered after cardiac surgery. Ingraham and Matson 3 have pointed out that, when focal neurological signs, convulsions, or symptoms of increased intracranial pressure are present in a patient with either tetralogy of Fallot or certain other forms of congenital heart disease, the diagnosis of brain abscess should be considered. It is important to determine to what extent the surgical procedures now used in patients with tetralogy of Fallot alter the propensity of these patients to develop brain abscess. We wish to report a case