Identification of Inadvertent Azygous Vein Cannulation Using Transthoracic Echocardiography During Venoarterial Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Initiation.

• Adequate cannula positioning is integral to the initiation of ECMO support. • Inadvertent azygous vein cannulation can impair venous drainage to the ECMO circuit. • Chest radiography can miss serious complications such as azygous vein cannulation.

Development of quality metrics for ambulatory pediatric cardiology: Transposition of the great arteries after arterial switch operation.

Objective: To develop quality metrics (QMs) for the ambulatory care of patients with transposition of the great arteries following arterial switch operation (TGA/ASO).

Design: Under the auspices of the American College of Cardiology Adult Congenital and Pediatric Cardiology (ACPC) Steering committee, the TGA/ASO team generated candidate QMs related to TGA/ASO ambulatory care. Candidate QMs were submitted to the ACPC Steering Committee and were reviewed for validity and feasibility using individual expert panel member scoring according to the RAND-UCLA methodology.

Neonatal acute myocardial infarction of unknown etiology treated with surgical thrombectomy.

Coronary artery thrombosis and resultant myocardial infarction in neonates are exceedingly rare. Seldom does a neonate survive this myocardial insult. Often there is an underlying predisposition to coronary artery thrombosis, such as thrombophilia, central line placement, or myocarditis.

Streptococcus pneumoniae causing mycotic aneurysm in a pediatric patient with coarctation of the aorta.

Mycotic aneurysms are rare in patients with congenital heart disease, but may occur in those with aortic coarctation and abnormal aortic valve. Rapid diagnosis of mycotic aneurysm is of extreme importance given the significant reported incidence of morbidity and mortality across all age groups. Aortic aneurysm is uncommon before the second decade of life, and here we report a 10-year-old male patient with new diagnosis of aortic coarctation and bicuspid aortic valve, who developed a rapidly enlarging mycotic aneurysm from Streptococcus pneumoniae.

Atrial tachyarrhythmias in neonatal enterovirus myocarditis.

Enterovirus myocarditis can be a serious infection in neonates, complicated by cardiac dysfunction and arrhythmias. Although decreased systolic function and ventricular arrhythmias have been reported, there is limited description of significant atrial involvement. We present an unusual series of three infants at our institution with enterovirus myocarditis in the neonatal period associated with atrial arrhythmias and dilation.

Atrial septal stent implant: atrial septal defect creation in the management of complex congenital heart defects in infants.

Objectives: Certain congenital heart defects require the creation of an unrestrictive atrial septal defect (ASD) to relieve atrial hypertension, to maintain systemic cardiac output, or to achieve adequate atrial mixing to improve systemic oxygen saturation. We describe a series of patients, ranging in age from 5 weeks to 17 months, in whom we implanted a stent across the atrial septum to create a lasting, unrestrictive interatrial communication.

Methods: Five patients with left heart obstructive defects presented with severe left atrial hypertension.

Impact of transcatheter occlusion of a patent ductus arteriosus on atrial septal defect diameter in children.

Background: A persistent patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) may delay closure of a coexisting atrial septal defect (ASD) due to volume loading and enlargement of the left atrium. The purpose of this study was to investigate the natural history of ASD size in patients with a PDA following transcatheter PDA occlusion.

Methods: All patients with an ASD and a PDA who underwent transcatheter PDA occlusion at Texas Children's Hospital were identified.

Persistence of bilateral arterial ducts in pulmonary atresia despite confluent branch pulmonary arteries: opportunity for two percutaneous therapeutic alternatives.

We present a case of a newborn infant with double inlet left ventricle, pulmonary atresia, confluent pulmonary arteries, and bilateral arterial ducts (AD), to discuss the therapeutic alternatives offered by interventional catheterization techniques in this anatomic arrangement. The infant initially underwent stenting of the right AD to stabilize pulmonary blood flow off of prostaglandin infusion. Three weeks later, she developed left pulmonary artery isolation upon closure of the left arterial duct.

Transcatheter occlusion of a residual muscular ventricular septal defect using an Amplatzer duct occluder in a child with congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries.

Transcatheter occlusion has become an acceptable alternative to surgery in patients with congenital muscular and residual post-surgical ventricular septal defects (VSD). We present a case of an 11 year old male with congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries, dextrocardia, pulmonary atresia, VSD, and advanced second degree atrioventricular block who underwent successful transcatheter occlusion of a residual post-surgical VSD with an Amplatzer duct occluder, in preparation for transvenous pacemaker implantation.

Transcatheter atrial septal defect closure: modified balloon sizing technique to avoid overstretching the defect and oversizing the Amplatzer septal occluder.

The objective of this study was to evaluate a new technique of sizing atrial septal defects (ASDs) for transcatheter device closure. ASD closure using the Amplatzer septal occluder (ASO) device is commonly performed. Complications, including arrhythmias, pericardial effusions, and perforations, may be related to oversizing ASDs and choosing larger devices.

Use of cutting balloon for palliative treatment in tetralogy of Fallot.

In tetralogy of Fallot, severe cyanosis due to insufficient pulmonary blood flow necessitates early intervention. The Cutting Balloon, developed for percutaneous coronary angioplasty, was used successfully for transcatheter incision and dilation of infundibular and valvar pulmonary stenosis in four patients with tetralogy of Fallot.