• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.31 no.12
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• pp.1230-1233
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• 1998

The Cox-Maze procedure was developed as a cure for atrial fibrillation. The recovery rate of both atrial contractility is reported low in the atrial fibrillation associated with mitral valvular heart disease than that of loan atrial fibrillation. We performed the Cox-Maze procedure (Maze III) in three cases who suffered from non-mitral heart diseases associated with atrial fibrillation: A ruptured sinus of Valsalva aneurysm, a ventricular septal defect, and an aortic stenoinsufficiency. The Cox-Maze procedure was performed concomitantly with correction of the underlying heart disease. Conversion to sinus rhythm was achieved in all three patients, and both right and left atrial mechanical activities could be identified echocardiographically after three postoperative months.