Systemic-to-pulmonary collateral flow associations with antegrade pulmonary flow in single ventricle patients: insights from cardiac magnetic resonance imaging

In the palliated single ventricle anomalies, a considerable amount of the aortic flow may be absorbed by the systemic-pulmonary collateral flow (SPCF), which can be noninvasively assessed by cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR). The aims of this study were to (1) identify factors associated with SCPF in pediatric single ventricle patients, and (2) establish a cutoff values indicating an association between SCPF and a reduction in antegrade pulmonary flow. A retrospective single-tertiary-center cohort study included 158 consecutive CMR studies of patients with a single ventricle. In the uni- and multivariable analysis, SPCF was presented as a percentage of the total pulmonary venous flow (SPCF ). The minimal clinically important difference in Q /Q ratios was estimated as ≥0.50, and an optimal cutoff value was defined using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. SPCF was significantly smaller in the post-total cavopulmonary connection (TCPC) group than in the pre-TCPC patients (