Shipra Gupta¹, Ankit Sakhuja², Eric McGrath¹, Basim Asmar¹

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.12, No.2, pp. 196-201, 2017, DOI:10.1111/chd.12425

Abstract Background: We studied the incidence, trend, underlying conditions, microbiology, and outcomes of infective endocarditis (IE) in children during 11 years using Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) database. This is the largest all-payer inpatient care database in the United States containing data for more than 8 million hospital stays from over 1000 hospitals.
Methods: NIS data from 2000 to 2010 of primary discharge diagnosis of IE in children aged ≤19 years old were studied. Children with underlying congenital heart defects and acquired heart conditions were identified. Microbiological causative agents were recorded. Linear regression was used to assess trend of incidence over time.
… More >

Marco Astengo^1,2*, Caroline Berntsson^3*, Åse A. Johnsson^3,4, Peter Eriksson^1,2, Mikael Dellborg^1,2

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.12, No.2, pp. 174-180, 2017, DOI:10.1111/chd.12424

Abstract Objective: Coarctation of the aorta (CoA) is a common condition. Adult patients with newly diagnosed CoA and patients with recurring or residual CoA require evaluation of the severity of aortic obstruction. Cardiac catheterization is considered the gold standard for the evaluation of hemodynamically significant CoA. The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Guidelines for the management of grown-up congenital heart disease (GUCH) include noninvasive criteria for identifying significant CoA. Our aim was to investigate the ability of the Class I and Class IIa ESC recommendations to identify significant CoA at cardiac catheterization.
Design: Sixty-six adult patients with native or recurrent CoA… More >

Shyam Sathanandam¹, Pooja Kashyap¹, David Zurakowski², Lindsey Bird¹, Vera McGhee³, Jeffrey Towbin¹, Benjamin Rush Waller III¹

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.12, No.2, pp. 181-187, 2017, DOI:10.1111/chd.12423

Abstract Objectives: The primary aim of this study was to compare thermodilution (TD) cardiac index (TDCi) measured by injecting cold saline (C-TDCi) to saline at room temperature (R-TDCi). The secondary aim was to assess the change in body temperature with cold saline injections in children.
Design: This is a prospective, case control study.
Setting: Cardiac catheterization lab at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee.
Patients: Eighty-six children ≤18 years of age that underwent cardiac catheterization between April 2013 and April 2015, excluding patients with admixing lesions, on inotropic support and with ejection fraction < 30%.
Interventions: A TD catheter in the… More >

Matthew J. Lewis¹, Elizabeth Hecht², Jonathan Ginns¹, Joshua Benton², Martin Prince², Marlon S. Rosenbaum¹

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.12, No.2, pp. 153-158, 2017, DOI:10.1111/chd.12422

Abstract Background: The progression of hepatic disease in adult Fontan patients is not well understood. They reviewed the experience with serial cardiac MRIs (CMR) in adult Fontan patients to determine if hepatic anatomic markers of prolonged Fontan exposure were present and if clinical predictors of progressive hepatic congestion could be identified.
Methods and Results: A retrospective cohort study of all adult Fontan patients who had undergone at least two CMRs was performed. Hepatic dimensions, inferior vena cava (IVC) size, right hepatic vein (RHV) size and spleen diameter were determined from images acquired at the time of clinically guided CMR. Two radiologists… More >

Douglas S. Moodie

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.12, No.1, pp. 5-5, 2017, DOI:10.1111/chd.12444

Abstract This article has no abstract. More >

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.13, No.6, pp. 883-883, 2018, DOI:10.1111/chd.12734

Abstract This article has no abstract. More >

Christian Paech, Franziska Wagner, Sebastian Mensch, Roman Antonin Gebauer

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.13, No.6, pp. 1064-1068, 2018, DOI:10.1111/chd.12682

Abstract Introduction: Reflex vasovagal—or cardioinhibitory syncope is known to be a major cause of recurrent syncope in children. The mechanism of vasovagal syncope (VVS) is an interaction between a vagally mediated bradycardia or asystole and a more or less manifest vasodilatory component. Although pacing is not advisable as a standard approach in patients with VVS, it remains a treatment option of last resort in excep‐ tionally severe cases, or patients with contraindication or refractoriness to drug ther‐ apy and life style changes. To effectively avoid VVS in these patients, the pacemaker has to both prevent bradycardia and to compensate for the… More >

Soham Dasgupta¹, Megan Stark², Sonal Bhatt³, Peter Fischbach¹, Shriprasad Deshpande¹

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.13, No.6, pp. 1058-1063, 2018, DOI:10.1111/chd.12681

Abstract Introduction: A cardiac cause is an extremely rare etiology of pediatric chest pain. Despite its low sensitivity/specificity, exercise stress testing (EST) is widely used to determine the prognosis in patients with suspected/established coronary disease. We aimed to look at the utility of a combined cardiopulmonary EST in the evaluation of pediatric patients with chest pain.
Methods: After institutional review board approval, a retrospective chart review was performed of all pediatric patients who were referred for an EST for chest pain from January 2014 to 2017. Patients with incomplete records, severe congenital heart disease, and a prior EST were excluded.
Results:… More >

Shae Anderson^1,2, Courtney E. McCracken², Ritu Sachdeva^1,2

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.13, No.6, pp. 1050-1057, 2018, DOI:10.1111/chd.12679

Abstract Objective: The educational intervention (EI) through the Pediatric Appropriate Use of Echocardiography (PAUSE) multicenter study resulted in improved appropriate‐ ness of transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) orders at our center. The current study evaluated if this pattern persisted after cessation of EI and the potential physician characteristics influencing appropriateness.
Design: Outpatients (≤18 years old) seen for initial evaluation during the EI (July to October, 2015) and 6‐month post‐EI (May to August, 2016) phases were included. Comparison was made between TTE rates and appropriateness ratings during EI and post‐EI phase. Association between TTE rate and appropriateness with physician characteristics (age, experience, patient volume,… More >

Nurdan Ozturk Tasar¹, Pelin Kosger², Nevzat Uzuner³, Birsen Ucar²

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.13, No.6, pp. 1038-1044, 2018, DOI:10.1111/chd.12678

Abstract Objective: We aimed to investigate the effect of ventricular septal defect (VSD) and heart failure on cerebral blood flow (CBF) in children, whether heart failure treatment improves CBF, and if there is any relationship between CBF and serum N‐ terminal pro‐brain natriuretic peptide (NT‐proBNP) level.
Method: Forty children with VSD (13 with heart failure) aged between 1 and 36 months were studied. The control group comprised 25 healthy children in the same age group. Maximum, minimum, and mean blood flow velocities and pulsatility indices of the right and left middle cerebral arteries were assessed using transcranial Doppler ultrasonography. Measurements of… More >