Pediatric cardiology
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Pediatric cardiology · Dec 2014
Health care-associated infections in children after cardiac surgery.
Few recent studies have assessed the epidemiology of health care-associated infections (HAIs) in the pediatric population after cardiac surgery. A retrospective cohort study was performed to assess the epidemiology of several types of HAIs in children 18 years of age or younger undergoing cardiac surgery from July 2010 to June 2012. Potential pre-, intra-, and postoperative risk factors, including adherence to the perioperative antibiotic prophylaxis regimen at the authors' hospital, were assessed by multivariable analysis using Poisson regression models. ⋯ Bacteremia and CLABSI were the most common. This study identified several potentially modifiable risk factors that suggest interventions. Further studies should assess the role of improving adherence to perioperative antibiotic prophylaxis, the age of transfused red blood cells, and evidence-based guidelines for postoperative steroids.
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Pediatric cardiology · Oct 2014
Randomized Controlled TrialUltrasound- versus landmark-guided femoral catheterization in the pediatric catheterization laboratory: a randomized-controlled trial.
Ultrasound (US) is the standard of care for vascular access in many clinical scenarios. Limited data exist regarding the benefits of US- versus landmark (LM)-guided femoral vascular access in the pediatric catheterization laboratory. This study aimed to compare US- and LM-guided vascular access in the pediatric catheterization laboratory. ⋯ In this study, US access in the pediatric catheterization laboratory did not improve overall success. However, US improved accuracy and reduced the number attempts necessary for access without prolonging the access time of the procedure. Small children realized the greatest benefit of US-guided access.
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Pediatric cardiology · Oct 2014
Comparative StudySplanchnic near-infrared spectroscopy and risk of necrotizing enterocolitis after neonatal heart surgery.
Infants with critical congenital heart disease, especially patients with a single-ventricle (SV) physiology, are at increased risk for the development of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC). Decreased splanchnic oxygen delivery may contribute to the development of NEC and may be detected by regional oximetry (rSO2) via splanchnic near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS). This prospective study enrolled 64 neonates undergoing biventricular (BV) repair or SV palliation for CHD and monitored postoperative splanchnic rSO2 before and during initiation of enteral feedings to determine whether changes in rSO2 are associated with risk of NEC. ⋯ No difference was observed in splanchnic rSO2 or in the SpO2-rSO2 difference between the SV subjects with and without NEC. Compared with the patients who had suspected or no NEC, the subjects with proven NEC had a lower average splanchnic rSO2 (32.6 vs 47.0 %; p = 0.05), more time with rSO2 less than 30 % (48.8 vs 6.7 %; p = 0.04) at one-fourth-volume feeds, and more time with SpO2-rSO2 exceeding 50 % (33.3 vs 0 %; p = 0.03) before feeds were initiated. These data suggest that splanchnic NIRS may be a useful tool for assessing risk of NEC, especially in patients with an SV physiology.
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Pediatric cardiology · Oct 2014
Tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion does not correlate with right ventricular ejection fraction in patients with hypoplastic left heart syndrome after Fontan palliation.
Tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) reflects longitudinal myocardial shortening, the main component of right ventricular (RV) contraction in normal hearts. To date, TAPSE has not been extensively studied in patients with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) and systemic RVs after Fontan palliation. This retrospective study investigated HLHS patients after Fontan with cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) performed between 1 January 2010 and 1 August 2012 and transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) performed within 6 months of CMR. ⋯ In patients with HLHS after Fontan, TAPSE is reproducible on CMR and TTE, with good agreement between the two imaging methods. Diminished TAPSE suggests impaired longitudinal shortening in the systemic RV. However, TAPSE is not a surrogate for RVEF in this study population.