Tetralogy of Fallot is a cyanotic congenital heart disease characterized by large ventricular septal defect[VSD] and stenosis of right ventricular outflow tract[RVOT] and the degree of RVOT stenosis and the state of pulmonary arteries are the major determinant of prognosis of this anomaly after operation. The sum of blood flow through RVOT and collateral flow from systemic arteries determine the total pulmonary blood flow and it is drained to left atrium and left ventricle. Therefore the degree of development of left ventricle not only reflects pulmonary blood flow and the status of peripheral pulmonary arteries but also affects postoperative prognosis as a systemic ventricle. In this article, left ventricular volume and its influence on postoperative cardiac function in tetralogy of Fallot were studied in 34 patients operated on at Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Seoul National University Hospital in 1985. Mean age of the patients was 5 1/12*3 9/12 years[range 9/12 - 14 8/12 years], mean body surface area[BSA] 0.65*0.20m2[range 0.38 - 1.22m2], mean body weight 15.6k6.48kg[range 7.0 - 36kg]and mean hematocrit 50.6*9.77%[range 32.0 - 73.5%]. Left ventricular end-diastolic volume[LVEDV] of them were from 11.2 to 113cc and there was a good linear correlation between BSA[m2, X]and LVEDV[cc, Y][Y= - 20.0+923x, r= 0.84, p < 0.005]. Mean LVEDV/m2 was [57.6 * 18.3 cc / m2[range 28.7 - 95.8 cc / m2] and there was a significant reduction of volume compared with normal value. As body surface increases, there was a increasing tendency in LVEDV/m2 but there was no statistical significance. Mean total amount of postoperatively infused dopamine in these 33 patients[except one who expired postoperatively] was 65.6*74.5mg / kg and it was 40.6*44.0mg / kg in routine RVOT widening group [Group I] and 205*49.3mg / kg in transannular RVOT widening group[Group II]. There was a statistically significant difference between two groups. In group I patients there was a good linear inverse correlation between dopamine total amount[mg / kg, Y] and LV volume[cc / m2, X] [Y = 150 - 1.89 X, r = - 0. 77, p < 0.005]. But there were no correlations between dopamine total amount and Hct, cardiopulmonary bypass time and aorta cross clamp time. In conclusion, the patient with small preoperative left ventricular volume required more amount of dopamine as an inotropic agent for the maintenance of a cardiac function in postoperative period. But this is a result of immediate postoperative period and does not reflect the long term effect of left ventricular volume in tetralogy of Fallot. There must be more study for the evaluation of its long term effect.