Systemic-to-pulmonary artery shunt using the internal mammary artery.

Systemic-to-pulmonary artery shunts may be useful for palliation of cyanotic congenital heart disease. We report the case of a 5-year-old boy in whom the internal mammary artery was used to create a systemic-to-pulmonary artery shunt after failure of a previous Blalock-Taussig shunt. This technique may have distinct advantages in selected cases and should be considered as an alternative during investigation of the older child who requires a systemic-to-pulmonary artery shunt.