Exercise Capacity and Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Children with Congenital Heart Diseases: A Proposal for an Adapted NYHA Classification.

Objective: To propose and evaluate an adapted NYHA classification for children with congenital heart disease (CHD) as a feasible clinical tool for classifying patients' fitness, cardiorespiratory efficiency and functional limitations during their ordinary daily activities, which are also characterized by vigorous and competitive physical exercise among peers.

Methods: This cross-sectional investigation analyzed 332 patients (13.1 ± 3.

[Physical activity in patients with repaired and unrepaired congenital heart diseases. Task Force for exercise prescription in patients with congenital heart disease of the Italian Society of Pediatric Cardiology and Congenital Heart Disease].

Regular physical activity is essential for physical health and mental wellbeing in children and teenagers. However, patients with congenital heart disease are often restricted from being physically active due to parental overprotection and lack of physical activity promotion or exercise prescription from their physicians. A comprehensive medical evaluation is crucial for the development of personalized exercise programs for these patients.

Arterial switch operation for transposition of the great arteries: A single-centre 32-year experience.

Objective: Arterial switch operation (ASO) is nowadays the standard of care for neonates with D-transposition of the great arteries (D-TGA). We evaluated our early and late results with ASO for D-TGA.

Materials And Methods: We collected data on 267 patients with D-TGA, either with intact ventricular septum (D-TGA/IVS; n = 182, 68%) and with other associated congenital heart malformations (complex D-TGA; n = 85, 32%) that underwent ASO between January 1987 and July 2018.

Psychometric Properties of the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children in Italy: Testing the Validity among a General and Clinical Pediatric Population.

The purpose of this research was to assess an Italian version of the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children (PAQ-C-It). Three separate studies were conducted, whereby testing general psychometric properties, construct validity, concurrent validity and the factor structure of the PAQ-C-It among general and clinical pediatric population. Study 1 (n = 1170) examined the psychometric properties, internal consistency, factor structure (exploratory factor analysis, EFA) and construct validity with enjoyment perception during physical activity.

Do Kawasaki disease patients without coronary artery abnormalities need a long-term follow-up? A myocardial single-photon emission computed tomography pilot study.

Objective: To determine the frequency and risk factors for long-term myocardial perfusion scintigraphy abnormalities in patients with Kawasaki disease (KD).

Methods: A cohort of patients with KD at least 3 years after disease onset and with persistent coronary artery aneurysms (CAA) (group 1) or without CAA (group 2) underwent stress-rest myocardial single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). Clinical and laboratory parameters at disease onset were considered to assess their predictive value for the development of myocardial perfusion abnormalities.

Effects of aerobic exercise training in children after the Fontan operation.

It was demonstrated that patients who have undergone the Fontan operation can safely undertake exercise training and that this results in an improvement in aerobic capacity. These findings suggest that aerobic training could be useful in the long-term management of these patients to optimize their cardiovascular fitness for more active lives.

Decreased serum leptin levels during prolonged high altitude exposure.

Circulating leptin concentrations are shown to be influenced not only by hormones, but also by body weight and energy balance. High altitude (HA) exposure induces a daily negative energy balance and stress hormone activation. The aim of our study was to evaluate leptin concentration during both acute and prolonged HA exposure and its correlations with some metabolic and hormonal parameters.

Leptin reduction after endurance races differing in duration and energy expenditure.

Serum leptin concentrations are reduced in the presence of a negative energy balance. It has been demonstrated, however, that strenuous and prolonged exercise, which induces a marked negative energy balance, is not always followed by a reduction in serum leptin levels. We therefore analysed serum leptin concentrations before and after three endurance races, which differed in duration and energy expenditure (EE), with the aim of clarifying the relationship between the level of EE and the reduction in leptin levels.