Publications by authors named "Gabriela Duica"

Atrial septal defects (ASDs) present a significant healthcare challenge, demanding accurate and timely diagnosis and precise management to ensure optimal patient outcomes. Artificial intelligence (AI) applications in healthcare are rapidly evolving, offering promise for enhanced medical decision-making and patient care. In the context of cardiology, the integration of AI promises to provide more efficient and accurate diagnosis and personalized treatment strategies for ASD patients.

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Duct-dependent congenital heart disease requires attentive therapeutic management since the only source of pulmonary blood flow in newborns is provided by the patent ductus arteriosus. The patency of the duct is the main objective in the first hours of life and it is guaranteed by prostaglandin E1 infusion, but it is not a long-term solution for this type of cardiac malformation. In order to augment pulmonary blood, there are two types of interventions that can be performed: a classical surgical shunt or stenting of the ductus arteriosus, a fairly new alternative to cardiac palliative surgery.

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Article Synopsis
  • Hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) is a leading cause of acute kidney failure in children, often post-gastrointestinal infections, characterized by renal failure, anemia, and low platelet levels, with cardiac issues frequently complicating the condition.
  • The study aimed to assess cardiovascular complications in children with HUS, identify diagnostic tools, and determine effective treatment protocols to manage these heart-related issues.
  • Research was conducted on 50 children aged 5 to 40 months, revealing conditions like hypertension, heart failure, and significant echocardiography findings such as left ventricular hypertrophy and diastolic dysfunction, with many patients responding well to ACE inhibitors.
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Atrial septal defect (ASD) is one of the most common congenital heart diseases (CHDs) diagnosed in children. Symptoms in ASD may be absent, but palpitations and dyspnea in children sometimes reveal a complex structural and CHD. Diagnosis is established usually by transthoracic echocardiography, but in more complex cases such as coronary sinus defect, enhanced computed tomography or cardiac magnetic resonance may be used.

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Unroofed coronary sinus (UCS) is among the rarest congenital heart malformations in pediatric practice. Often, they are associated with persistent left superior vena cava (PLSVC) draining into the left atrium, and in this situation, there is a double intracardiac shunt, right-to-left and left-to-right. They are asymptomatic in the majority of the cases.

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Closure of the atrial septal defect (ASD) and patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) are among the most frequent cardiac interventional procedures. This was a prospective study, which started together with the implementation of a national program of pediatric interventional cardiology in Romania. We used Cocoon devices in 83 consecutive cases from 92 implantations for ASD and PDA.

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Great artery transposition, one of the most frequent and severe cyanotic heart malformations, represented the subject of many studies and research up to this moment. Although postnatal period is critical in this pathology, with correct management patients can benefit from complete surgical correction - arterial switch operation with good long term evolution. Prenatal diagnosis of Great Artery Transposition has an important contribution in choosing the appropriate treatment at the right time in postnatal period so that specific complications resulting from delaying the initiation of specific therapies can be avoided.

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Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is mean pulmonary arterial pressure above 25 mmHg at rest. Although considered a rare disease, the prevalence of PH in certain risk groups is higher, from 0.5% in patients with HIV infection to 30% in congenital heart disease (CHD) associating PH.

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Infective endocarditis is rare in children and is rarer on a normal structural heart in an infant without any surgical intervention. Most cases are related to a pre-existing congenital lesion, the most frequent etiology are Gram-positive cocci and the most feared are fungal agents. This report presents a 7-monthold infant with fungal endocarditis on a normal structural heart.

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