Measures of cardiac repolarization and body position in infants.

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is the most common cause of death in children between 1 and 6 months of age. Recent data suggest that a prolonged QTc interval on the 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) is associated with SIDS. Prone body position during sleep is also known to be a risk factor for SIDS; this has prompted the American Academy of Pediatrics to promote the "Back to Sleep" campaign.

Chest pain in the adolescent and young adult.

Pediatric cardiologists and cardiologists who examine adults frequently receive referrals of adolescents and young adults with chest pain. Chest pain in this age group is most likely noncardiac in origin, which often creates a diagnostic dilemma for the consultant in terms of the etiology and extent of evaluation. This review presents the noncardiac and cardiac etiologies of chest pain in adolescents and young adults, as well as the key features of a patient's history and physical examination that help delineate cardiac from noncardiac chest pain.

Clinical auscultation skills in pediatric residents.

Objective: The aim of this study is to determine the level of clinical auscultation skills in pediatric residents at Duke University Medical Center.

Methods: Forty-seven residents from pediatrics and joint medicine/pediatrics training programs at Duke University Medical Center were enrolled in this study. They were asked to examine the cardiovascular patient simulator, Harvey, and report their findings.

The heart in sickle cell anemia. The Cooperative Study of Sickle Cell Disease (CSSCD).

The objective of this study was to obtain representative echocardiographic measurements of cardiac size and function in stable patients with sickle cell disease. This prospective, multicenter study utilized central reading of echocardiograms by an investigator blinded to other patient data. Stable outpatients from a balance of inner city and rural settings with SS phenotype and a broad age range were selected, because conflicting results from earlier studies were believed to be due to these patient selection criteria.

Neonatal correction of transposition of the great arteries: the Connecticut experience.

The treatment of transposition of the great arteries, a common congenital cardiac defect, has undergone significant development. Prior to 1989 a surgical approach which repaired the transposition at the atrial level (Senning's operation), but did not restore normal anatomy, was the procedure of choice. Since 1989 a surgical approach that restores normal anatomy (Jatene's arterial switch) has been followed.