Letter to the editor 0Springer-Verlag Eur J Cardio-thorac

1992

Surg (1992) 6: 677

Surgical treatment of infected persistent ductus arteriosus R. Hurt The White House, 8 Loom Lane, Radlett, Herts WD7 8AD, UK

In the interest of historical accuracy I write in response to the article by L. Stejskal and J. Stark in the recent issue of this journal [2]. The credit for the first surgical treatment of an infected persistent ductus arteriosus should be given to Oswald Tubbs of St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, London, who carried out the operation on 5 December 1939 [5]. The operation reported by Touroff and Vessel was on 27 January 1940 [3]. Tubbs reported his first two successful cases in 1941 [I] and a further nine cases (six of which remained cured 1% -4 years after operation) in a Hunterian lecture at the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 1943 [4].

Received: September

8, 1992/Accepted:

September

28, 1992

References 1. Bourne G, Keele KD, Tubbs OS (1941) Ligation and chemotherapy for infection of patent ductus arteriosus. Lancet II: 444-446 2. Stejskal L, Stark J (1992) Surgical treatment of persistent ductus arteriosus complicated by bacterial endocarditis. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg 6: 272-273 3. Touroff ASW, Vessel H (1940) Experience in the surgical treatment of subacute Streptococcus viridans endarteritis complicating patent ductus arteriosus. J Thorac Surg 10: 59-83 4. Tubbs OS (1944) The effect of ligation of infection on the persistent patent ductus arteriosus. Br J Surg 32: 1- 12 5. Tubbs OS, Keele KD (1940) Combined ligation of ductus arteriosus and sulphapyridine therapy in a case of influenza1 endarteritis. St Bart’s Hosp J War Bull 1: 175-177