True Aneurysmal Dilatation of a Contegra Conduit after Right Ventricular Outflow Tract Reconstruction: A Novel Mechanism of Conduit Failure

Valved conduits are frequently used in congenital heart surgery to establish continuity between the right ventricle and the pulmonary arteries. The Contegra bovine jugular vein (Medtronic Inc, Minneapolis, MN) is a conduit that incorporates a tri-leaflet valve and affords off-the-shelf availability, good handling characteristics, and excellent hemodynamics. However, complications related to the use of this device have been reported, with conduit failure occurring mainly as a consequence of stenosis, conduit thrombosis, and valve regurgitation. We present a case of aneurysmal conduit failure of a 14-mm Contegra conduit used to reconstruct the right ventricular outflow tract.