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OBJECTIVES Prolonged pleural effusion/chylothorax (PPE/C) is a less investigated complication following paediatric cardiac surgery, and its true incidence, risk factors and impact on postoperative outcomes are not well described. We aim to address these gaps in knowledge using data from a prospective, multicentre study. METHODS Data on 9 post-operative morbidities (unplanned reinterventions, extracorporeal life support, necrotising enterocolitis, PPE/C, renal replacement therapy, major adverse events, acute neurological events, feeding issues and postsurgical infection) were prospectively collected at 5 UK centres between 2015 and 2017, following paediatric cardiac surgery. Incidence of PPE/C, associations with procedure types, and risk factors were described. Mortality (30-day and 6-month) and hospital length of stay (HLoS) were compared between those with isolated PPE/C, single non-PPE/C morbidity, no morbidity, multimorbidity PPE/C and non-PPE/C multimorbidity. RESULTS A total of 3090 procedures (2861 patients) were included (median age, 228 days). There were 202 PPE/C (incidence of 6.5%), occurring at a median of 6 days postoperatively (interquartile range: 3–10). PPE/C was associated with excess early mortality only when complicating scenarios where at least 2 other post-operative morbidities occurred. On average PPE/C is associated with 8 more HLoS days, but the relative impact is greatest when comparing isolated PPE/C with no morbidity (P  < 0.001), whereas in multimorbidity scenarios, PPE/C does not significantly contribute to an increase of HLoS. CONCLUSIONS Addition of PPE/C increases mortality but not HLoS in multimorbidity and HLoS only in single morbidity scenarios. This reinforces the important role of prevention, early detection and management of PPE/C in complex situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exercise and physical activity (PA) have been shown to be effective, safe and feasible in both healthy children and children with congenital heart disease (CHD). However, implementing exercise training as an intervention is still not routine in children with CHD despite considerable evidence of health benefits and well-being. Understanding how children with CHD can safely participate in exercise can boost participation in PA and subsequently reduce inactivity-related diseases. Home-based exercise intervention, with the use of personal wearable activity trackers, and high-intensity interval training have been beneficial in adults' cardiac rehabilitation programmes. However, these remain underutilised in paediatric care. Therefore, the aims of this narrative review were to synthesise prescribed exercise interventions in children with CHD, identify possible limitation to exercise training prescription and provide an overview on how to best integrate exercise intervention effectively for this population into daily practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Open in new tab Download slide Open in new tab Download slide OBJECTIVES Many adults with repaired tetralogy of Fallot will require a pulmonary valve replacement (PVR), but there is no consensus on the best timing. In this study, we aim to evaluate the impact of age at PVR on outcomes. METHODS This is a national multicentre retrospective study including all patients >15 years of age with repaired tetralogy of Fallot who underwent their first PVR between 2000 and 2013. The optimal age cut-off was identified using Cox regression and classification and regression tree analysis. RESULTS A total of 707 patients were included, median age 26 (15–72) years. The mortality rate at 10 years after PVR was 4.2%, and the second PVR rate of 6.8%. Age at PVR of 35 years was identified as the optimal cut-off in relation to late mortality. Patients above 35 years of age had a 5.6 fold risk of death at 10 years compared with those with PVR under 35 years (10.4% vs 1.3%, P  < 0.001), more concomitant tricuspid valve repair/replacement (15.1% vs 5.7%, P  < 0.001) and surgical arrhythmia treatment (18.4% vs 5.9%, P  < 0.001). In those under 50 years, there was an 8.7 fold risk of late death compared with the general population, higher for those with PVR after 35 than those with PVR below 35 years (hazard ratio 9.9 vs 7.4). CONCLUSIONS Patients above 35 years of age with repaired tetralogy of Fallot have significantly worse mortality after PVR, compared with younger patients and a higher burden of mortality relative to the general population. This suggests that there are still cases where the timing of initial PVR is not optimal, warranting a re-evaluation of criteria for intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There are several options available for aortic valve replacement (AVR), with few comparative reports in the literature. The optimal choice for AVR in each age group is not clear.Objectives: The study sought to report and compare outcomes after AVR in the young using data from a national database.Methods: AVR procedures were compared after advanced matching, both in pairs and in a 3-way manner, using a Bayesian dynamic survival model.Results: A total of 1,501 patients who underwent AVR in the United Kingdom between 2000 and 2012 were included. Of these, 47.8% had a Ross procedure, 37.8% a mechanical AVR, 10.9% a bioprosthesis AVR, and 3.5% a homograft AVR, with Ross patients being significantly younger when compared to the other groups. Overall survival at 12 years was 94.6%. In children, the Ross procedure had a 12.7% higher event-free probability (death or any reintervention) at 10 years when compared to mechanical AVR (p = 0.05). We also compared all procedures except the homograft in a matched population of young adults, where the bioprosthesis had the lowest event-free probability of 78.8%, followed by comparable results in mechanical AVR and Ross, with 86.3% and 89.6%, respectively. Younger age was associated with mortality and pulmonary reintervention in the Ross group and with aortic reintervention in the mechanical AVR. Of all 3 options, only the patients undergoing the Ross procedure approached the survival of the general population.Conclusions: AVR in the young achieves good results, with the Ross being overall better suited for this age group, especially in children. Although freedom from aortic valve reintervention is superior after the Ross procedure, the need for homograft reinterventions is an issue to take into account. All methods have advantages and limitations, with reinterventions being an issue in the long term for all, more crucially in smaller children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unplanned reintervention (uRE) is used as an indicator of patient morbidity and quality of care in pediatric cardiac surgery. We investigated associated factors and early mortality after uREs. Morbidity data were prospectively collected in 5 UK centers between 2015 and 2017; uRE included surgical cardiac, interventional transcatheter cardiac, permanent pacemaker, and diaphragm plication procedures. Mortality (30-day and 6-month) in uRE/no-uRE patients was reported before and after matching. Predicted 30-day mortality was calculated using the Partial Risk Adjustment in Surgery score. A total of 3090 procedures (2861 patients) were included (median age, 228 days). There were 146 uREs, resulting in an uRE rate of 4.7%. Partial Risk Adjustment in Surgery score, 30-day mortality and 6-month mortality in uRE and no-uRE groups were 2.4% versus 1.3%, 8.9% versus 1%, and 17.1% versus 2.4%, respectively. After matching, mortality at 6 months remained higher in uRE compared with no-uRE (12.2% vs 1.4%; P =.02; 74 pairs). In the uRE group, 21 out of 25 deaths at 6 months occurred when at least 1 additional postoperative complication was present. In multivariable analysis, neonatal age (P =.002), low weight (P =.009), univentricular heart (P <.001), and arterial shunt (P <.001) were associated with increased risk of uRE, but Partial Risk Adjustment in Surgery score was not (only in univariable analysis). uREs are a relatively frequent complication after pediatric cardiac surgery and are associated with some patient characteristics, but not the Partial Risk Adjustment in Surgery risk score. Early mortality was higher after uRE, independent of preoperative factors, but linked to other postoperative complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pediatric congenital heart surgery (CHS) involves intracardiac, valvular, and vascular repairs. Accurate tools to aid short-term outcome prediction in pediatric CHS are lacking. Clinical scores, such as the vasoactive-inotrope score and ventilation index, are used to define outcome in clinical studies. MicroRNA-1-3p (miR-1) is expressed by both cardiomyocytes and vascular cells and is regulated by hypoxia. In adult patients, miR-1 increases in the circulation after open-heart cardiac surgery, suggesting its potential as a clinical biomarker. Thus, we investigated whether perioperative circulating miR-1 measurements can help predict post-CHS short-term outcomes in pediatric patients. Plasma miR-1 was retrospectively measured in a cohort of 199 consecutive pediatric CHS patients (median age 1.2 years). Samples were taken before surgery and at the end of the operation. Plasma miR-1 concentration was measured by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction and expressed as miR-1 copies/μL and as relative expression to spiked-in exogenous cel-miR-39. Baseline plasma miR-1 did not vary across different diagnoses, increased during surgery (204-fold median relative increase, P <.001), and was associated with aortic crossclamp duration postoperatively (P <.001). Importantly, miR-1 levels at the end of the operation positively correlated with intensive care stay (P <.001), early severe cardiovascular events (P =.01), and with high vasoactive-inotrope score (P =.001) and ventilation index (P <.001), suggesting that miR-1 could accelerate the identification of patients with cardiopulmonary bypass−related ischemic complications, requiring more intensive support. Our study suggests miR-1 as a novel potential circulating biomarker to predict early postoperative outcome and inform clinical management in pediatric heart surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]