Eighteen infants with a large ventricular septal defect[VSD] underwent primary surgical repair from January 1986 to December 1992. Operation was done because of failure to thrive, medically intractable heart failure, recurrent pneumonia, increased pulmonary vascular resistance[PVR]. Four patients[22.2%] died in the early postoperative period. Relief of heart failure and normalization of growth and weight gain was evident in all survivor. There was no late postoperative death. The results of primary surgical repair of VSD in infancy are compared with those of palliative pulmonary artery banding[PAB] and of VSD closure after PAB. Twenty-seven patients with isolated VSD or with VSD associated with atrial septal defect, patent ductus arteriosus, or coarctation of the aorta underwent initial palliative PAB. There were 3 early postoperative deaths[11.1%]. Severe elevation of PVR persisted in two patients. Closure of VSD and pulmonary artery debanding was done in twenty patients, with 2 early postoperative deaths[10.0%]. Placement of the PAB too close to the pulmonary annulus necessitated trasannular patching in one patient, but any problem caused by migration of the band was not developed. It is concluded that primary surgical repair of VSD in infancy is reasonable and that PAB is indicated only for those patients less than 6 months old with a complicated defect or in an emergency situation.