Paediatric Cardiac Surgery and Treatment

Paediatric Cardiac Surgery (surgeries for small children) at BLK-MAX Hospital comprises of round the clock dedicated team of surgeons, doctors, nurses, neonatal professionals and child care experienced healthcare providers having decade of experience in handling critical situations especially involving children.

BLK-MAX Hospital offers 360 range of super advanced tech like 3D imaging, ECHO, MRI, Catalpa for angiogram of heart with parallel running 24×7 NICU and PICU units having recruitment of professionals to deal with continental heart / acquired heart conditions of infants (small new born children) to handle complex cases of nature.

BLK-MAX Hospital provides diagnosis and management of congenital and acquired heart disease in infants, children, and adolescents. The unit is equipped with state-of-the-art technology to provide a comprehensive range of diagnostic and therapeutic services.

The team at BLK-MAX Hospital consists of of paediatric cardiac physicians, Paed cardiac surgeons, paediatric cardiac anaesthestits & intensivists, clinical nurse specialists and occupational specialists those offer compassionate multidisciplinary care. They work together in the preoperative evaluation of paediatric heart patients with congenital & acquired heart diseases.

What Are the 4 Stages of Congestive Heart Failure?

Congestive heart failure is progressive, meaning it gets worse over time. The four stages of CHF are:

• Stage 1: High Risk of Heart Failure
• Stage 2: Silent Heart Failure
• Stage 3: Diagnosed Heart Failure
• Stage 4: Advanced Heart Failure (Red Zone)

Importance of Surgical Options for Heart Failure

Non-surgical treatments such as medications and lifestyle modifications can help manage early-stage heart failure. However, when these methods fail to control symptoms or address the underlying causes, surgery becomes a viable option. Surgical interventions aim to:

• Improve heart function
• Address underlying structural issues
• Enhance quality of life
• Prolong survival in advanced heart failure cases

Congenital Heart Disease Causes and Treatment at BLK-MAX Hospital 

CHD can be caused due to several factors, though the exact cause is not yet known.

• Down syndrome occurs due to alteration in genes or chromosomes in children during the first six weeks of pregnancy, which marks the development of the heart.
• Maternal diabetes – Females with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes have higher chances of childbirth with CHD babies. High insulin levels in the blood may hinder the normal development of the foetus.
• Excessive alcohol consumption and smoking – Foetal alcohol spectrum disorder usually affects the foetus when the mother drinks excess alcohol during pregnancy, leading to arterial septal defects / ventricular septal defects. Another cause is smoking.
• Rubella virus – A viral infection that may cause CHD in babies if the mother carries the virus during the first 8 to 10 weeks of pregnancy.
• Medication – Several medicines like thalidomide, angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, and statins can be dangerous.

Congenital Heart Disease Symptoms

They include the following:

• Pale blue or grey lips, fingernails or tongue, also known as cyanosis.
• Repeated cough and colds.
• Rapid heartbeat and breathing.
• Swelling in the legs, belly or around the eyes.
• Shortness of breath or breathing difficulty while feeding activity.
• Extreme fatigue and exhaustion.
• Limited ability to do exercise.
• Poor growth and shunted growth.
• Abnormal sound of heartbeat – when diagnosed by local doctor / physician.

Congenital Heart Disease Diagnosis and tests at BLK-MAX Hospital 

After birth, the doctor will check the baby’s heart as part of the newborn physical examination. However, some defects do not show up for several years. There are several additional tests like echocardiography, electrocardiogram (ECG), X-ray chest, pulse oximetry, cardiac catheterisation CT and heart magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). These tests can either confirm or rule out a diagnosis.

Congenital Heart Disease Treatment at BLK-MAX Hospital 

The Congenital Heart Disease treatment will be initiated based on the type and severity of the disease. At times, the condition does not have any long-term effect on children and can go untreated. In most cases, treatment includes the following:

Medications

Blood pressure drugs, diuretics and antiarrhythmics are common for treatment.

• Blood pressure drugs like angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) and beta-blockers
• Diuretic drugs reduce the body’s fluid content, reducing the strain on the heart.
• Antiarrhythmic drugs help to normalise the irregular heartbeat.

Surgical interventions at BLK-MAX Hospital 

Few of the special procedures:

• Cardiac catheterisation – Cardiac catheterisation is useful when some heart defects can be fixed using thin, flexible tubes (called catheters) without open-heart surgery.
• Open-heart surgery -means complete correction or palliative.
• Heart transplant – comes into action when the defect is severe and irreparable by other methods.

Epidemiology of Congenital Heart Disease

• Gender – The number of new cases is high in males than in females.
• Causes – Both genetic and environmental, with the genetic factors being the primary ones
• Socioeconomic status – Countries with high socioeconomic status have slightly high CHD on account of screening newborns and exceptional medical infrastructure. Deaths are highest in low and middle-income countries.

Prognosis of Congenital Heart Disease

An average of 1-year survival of babies with severe CHD has been found, with survival rates gradually decreasing this adulthood. The percentage of 1-year survival was the highest, followed by 5-year and 10-year ones.