Objective：To compare the therapeutic effects of transthoracic minimally invasive closure and transcatheter closure of atrial septal defect（ASD） guided by echocardiography. Methods：In the study，80 patients treated with transthoracic minimally invasive clo－sure of atrial septal defect were selected as the study group，and 112 with transcatheter closure of atrial septal defect were selected as control group. Statistical methods were used for the comparison between the two groups. Results：In the study group，79 cases were successfully occluded and 1 case failed，with a success rate of 98.8%；in the control group，109 cases were successfully occluded and 3 cases failed，with a success rate of 97.3%. In the study group，there were 3 cases of residual pericardial effusion after operation，and the rest had no other complications；1 cases of femoral vein thrombosis，1 cases of puncture hematoma and 5 cases of pericardial effusion were found in the control group after operation. All patients were followed up for one year. The transverse diameter of right atrium，right ventricle and pulmonary artery in the study group and the control group were both significantly smaller than those before operation，and the area of tricuspid regurgitation was significantly reduced（P<0.01）. The type of occluder used in the study group was positively correlated with the maximum diameter of ASD screened by echocardiography（r=0.940，P<0.01）. The type of occluder used in the control group was also positively correlated with the maximum diameter of ASD screened by echocardiography（r=0.928，P<0.01），and the correlation in the study group was slightly higher than that in the control group. Conclusion：Transthoracic minimally invasive closure of atrial septal defect has a high success rate and few complications. The therapeutic effect is better than that of transcatheter closure，and it is of important clinical value.