Twelve (37.5%) out of 32 patients who underwent surgical repair of complete transposition of the great arteries (d-TGA) with ventricular septal defect (VSD) and pulmonary stenosis (PS) from 1978 to 1987 had insertion of tricuspid valve (TV) chordae to the infundibular septum, i.e. superior margin of the VSD, which precluded the ordinary Rastelli type operation. Of these 12 patients early 5 patients (ages: 2-11 mean 7 years) underwent atrial switch operations with VSD closure and pulmonary valvotomy with or without fibromyotomy, and recent 6 patients (age: 4-8, mean 6 years) underwent the Rastelli operation (3 cases) or REV (3) by translocating the infundibular septum with TV chordae to the right ventricular side of the internal conduit. None died in hospital in the former group and 1 in the latter. Pulmonary/systemic ventricular peak pressure ration (Ppv/sv) was 0.75 +/- 0.22 (mean +/- standard deviation) in the atrial switch group v. 0.49 +/- 0.08 in the Rastelli/REV group 1 month postoperatively. The higher Ppv/rv in the atrial switch group was attributed to the pressure gradient across the pulmonary outflow tract, which was 37.8 +/- 16.6 mmHg in the atrial switch v. 16.7 +/- 4.2 mmHg in the Rastelli/REV (p less than 0.05). No pressure gradient was demonstrated between left ventricle (LV) and aorta in the both groups. Pulmonary wedge pressure was higher in the atrial switch group (13.8 +/- 1.9 mmHg) than in the Rastelli/REV (10.0 +/- 2.7 mmHg) (p less than 0.05). Systemic atrioventricular (AV) valve regurgitation was noted in 2 of the atrial switch group but none in the Rastelli/REV.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)