A diagnosis of congenital heart disease (CHD) in offspring triggers psychological distress in parents. Results of previous studies have been inconsistent regarding the psychological impact of a ...prenatal versus a postnatal diagnosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of the time of diagnosis on levels of parental distress.
Pregnant women and their partners with a fetus diagnosed with complex CHD, parents of children with postnatally diagnosed CHD, and pregnant women and their partners with uncomplicated pregnancies were invited to participate. Data were collected during pregnancy and 2-6 months after delivery using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, sense of coherence, life satisfaction, and Dyadic Adjustment Scale.
During pregnancy, the prenatal group scored lower sense of coherence compared to controls (p=0.044). Postnatally the prenatal group scored lower on sense of coherence compared to the postnatal group and controls (p=0.001; p=0.001). Postnatally, the prenatal and postnatal groups had higher levels of anxiety compared to controls (p=0.025; p=0.0003). Life satisfaction was lower in the prenatal group compared to that in the postnatal group and in controls (p=0.000; p=0.0004).
Parents with a prenatal diagnosis of CHD in offspring report a low sense of coherence already during pregnancy which decreased further at follow-up. The same group reported a lower satisfaction with life compared to parents of a child with postnatal diagnosis of CHD and parents of a healthy child. This motivates further efforts to improve counselling and support during pregnancy and for parents after a prenatal diagnosis.
Aim
Pulse oximetry screening of newborn infants increases early detection of critical congenital heart disease and minimises the risk of circulatory collapse before surgery. This study provides an ...update on the implementation of pulse oximetry screening in the Nordic countries and proposes standardised guidelines.
Methods
A questionnaire exploring pulse oximetry screening, clinical examination routines and availability of echocardiography was distributed to all 157 delivery units in the Nordic countries in June 2013.
Results
We received responses from 156 of the 157 delivery units, and 116 (74%) were using pulse oximetry screening by September 2013. Preductal and postductal screening were both used in 59 of 116 units (51%), with just postductal screening in 51 of 116 (44%) and just preductal screening alone in 6 of 116 (5%). Screening was performed before 24 h in 105 of 116 units (91%). The implementation of screening was highest in Finland (29/30, 97%), Sweden (42/46, 91%) and Norway (43/48, 90%) and lowest in Denmark (2/24, 8%) and Iceland (0/8 units).
Conclusion
In Sweden, Norway and Finland, the implementation of pulse oximetry screening is currently the highest in the world and coverage will be close to 100% in 2014. We propose uniform Nordic guidelines using preductal and postductal screening before 24 h of age.
Prenatal screening for foetal cardiac abnormalities has been increasingly practiced in Sweden during the last 25 years. A prenatal diagnosis may have medical benefits but may also cause sustained ...parental psychological distress. The aim of this study was to explore pregnant women's, and their partner's, experiences of counselling and need for support during continued pregnancy following a prenatal diagnosis of a cardiac defect. A second aim was to use this information to propose a structured follow-up programme for continued support after the first counselling.
Qualitative study, using interviews performed 5-9 weeks after a prenatal diagnosis of congenital heart disease.
A tertiary foetal cardiology unit in Sweden Sample: Six pregnant women and their 6 partners, consecutively recruited after a prenatal diagnosis of an isolated and significant cardiac defect.
Qualitative content analysis.
The analysis resulted in three themes. 1/ Counselling and making a decision--the importance of knowledge and understanding: Short waiting time for specialist evaluation together with clear and straightforward information was essential. Parents called for written information together with a high-quality website with relevant information about congenital heart disease. 2/ Continued support during pregnancy: Continued and easy access to health care professionals, including a paediatric specialist nurse, throughout pregnancy, was important. Contact with couples with similar experiences and social media were also considered valuable sources of support. 3/ Next step--the near future: Practical and economical issues during the postnatal hospital stay and the initial period following the hospital stay were common concerns.
The following aspects should be considered in a structured follow up program during pregnancy after a prenatal diagnosis of CHD; written information, access to a safe web-site with information of high quality in their native language, support from parents with similar experiences and continued contact with a specialist liaison nurse with experience of paediatric cardiology.
Abstract Introduction Surgical repair of Coarctation of the aorta (CoA) is a safe procedure in children, however the condition is known for its potential recurrence and other related complications. ...The available evidence shows abnormal intrinsic properties of the aorta in CoA, thus suggesting additional effect, even after CoA repair, on left ventricular (LV) function. Accordingly, we sought to obtain a better understanding of LV myocardial mechanics in very early-corrected CoA using two-dimensional STE. Methods and results We retrospectively studied 21 patients with corrected CoA at a median age of 9 (2–53) days at three time points: 1) just before intervention, 2) at short-term follow-up and 3) at medium-term follow-up after intervention and compared them with normal values. Speckle tracking analysis was conducted via vendor independent software, Tomtec. After intervention, LV function significantly improved (from − 12.8 ± 3.9 to − 16.7 ± 1.7; p < 0.001), however normal values were not reached even at medium term follow-up (− 18.3 ± 1.7 vs. -20 ± 1.6; p = 0.002). Medium term longitudinal strain correlated with pre intervention EF (r = 0.58, p = 0.006). Moreover, medium term subnormal values were more frequently associated with bicuspid aortic valve (33.3% vs. 66.6%; p < 0.05). Conclusion LV myocardial function in neonates with CoA can be feasibly evaluated and followed up by speckle tracking echocardiography. LV subendocardial dysfunction however, remains in early infancy coarctation long after repair. Long-term follow-up through adulthood using myocardial deformation measurements should shed light on the natural history and consequences of this anomaly.
Prenatal treatment options for fetal heart disease are still limited but pharmacological treatment of fetal tachyarrhythmias is usually effective. Prenatal catheter interventions are likely to be an ...option in selected fetal cardiac defects in the future. Delivery should be at a tertiary care centre if the need for immediate neonatal transport is anticipated. When a cardiac problem is diagnosed in a fetus, the parents should be counselled by a paediatric cardiologist specialized in fetal cardiology in close co-operation with the obstetric team. The rate of termination is influenced by gestational age at diagnosis, the severity of the heart defect and the presence of associated malformations. In fetuses with isolated cardiac malformations who are in sinus rhythm with good myocardial function and no or trivial atrioventricular valve regurgitation, the risk of spontaneous intra-uterine death is low. Prenatal echocardiography has the potential to improve postnatal survival in infants with critical heart defects, especially those with duct-dependent systemic or pulmonary circulations.
Aim
The optimal treatment for foetal tachyarrhythmia remains controversial, and this study aimed to fill this gap in the knowledge.
Methods
We retrospectively reviewed all cases of foetal ...tachyarrhythmia diagnosed at two tertiary foetal cardiology centres in Sweden from 1990 to 2012.
Results
Of the 153 cases, 28% had atrial flutter (AF), 63% had atrioventricular reentrant tachycardia (AVRT) and 9% had other mechanisms. Hydrops was present in 45, less frequently in AF than in AVRT. Transplacental treatment was commenced in 99 and the rhythm normalised in two‐thirds, without any significant difference in cardioversion rates between AF and AVRT cases or nonhydropic and hydropic foetuses. Sotalol treatment had a higher cardioversion rate than digoxin in AVRT (63% versus 33%, p < 0.05) but not in AF (57% versus 56%). Two or more drugs were used in 38%. Neonatal survival was 100% in nonhydropic and 84% in hydropic cases. After a median of eight years, 11/134 patients still had arrhythmias, one had died due to arrhythmia and another had undergone cardiac transplantation.
Conclusion
Transplacental treatment was frequently insufficient to obtain cardioversion in nonhydropic and hydropic foetuses, but all nonhydropic cases had favourable outcomes. Larger prospective studies are needed to optimise the treatment of cases with hydrops.
Congenital heart block may develop in the fetuses of Ro/SSA-positive and La/SSB-positive mothers. Recurrence rates of only 10-20% despite persisting maternal antibodies indicate that additional ...factors are critical for the establishment of heart block. The authors investigated the influence of other maternal and fetal factors on heart block development in a Swedish population-based cohort.
The influence of fetal gender, maternal age, parity and time of birth on heart block development was analysed in 145 families, including Ro/La-positive (n=190) and Ro/La-negative (n=165) pregnancies.
There was a recurrence rate of 12.1% in Ro/La-positive women, and no recurrence in Ro/La-negative women. Fetal gender and parity did not influence the development of heart block in either group. Maternal age in Ro/La-positive pregnancies with a child affected by heart block was, however, significantly higher than in pregnancies resulting in babies without heart block (p<0.05).Seasonal timing of pregnancy influenced the outcome. Gestational susceptibility weeks 18-24 occurring during January-March correlated with a higher proportion of children with heart block and lower vitamin D levels during the same period in a representative sample of Swedish women and a corresponding higher proportion of children with heart block born in the summer (p<0.02). Maternal age or seasonal timing of pregnancy did not affect the outcome in Ro/La-negative pregnancies.
This study identifies maternal age and seasonal timing of pregnancy as novel risk factors for heart block development in children of Ro/La-positive women. These observations may be useful for counselling when pregnancy is considered.
Norwood surgery has been available in Sweden since 1993. In this national cohort study, we analysed transplantation-free survival after Norwood surgery for hypoplastic left heart syndrome with aortic ...atresia.
Patients were identified from the complete national cohort of live-born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome/aortic atresia 1993-2010. Analysis of survival after surgery was performed using Cox proportional hazards models for the total cohort and for birth period and gender separately. Thirty-day mortality and inter-stage mortality were analysed. Patients were followed until September 2016.
The 1993-2010 cohort consisted of 208 live-born infants. Norwood surgery was performed in 121/208 (58%). The overall transplantation-free survival was 61/121 (50%). The survival was higher in the late period (10-year survival 63%) than in the early period (10-year survival 40%) (p = 0.010) and lower for female (10-year survival 34%) than for male patients (10-year survival 59%) (p = 0.002). Inter-stage mortality between stages I and II decreased from 23 to 8% (p = 0.008). For male patients, low birthweight in relation to gestational age was a factor associated with poor outcome.
The survival after Norwood surgery for hypoplastic left heart syndrome/aortic atresia improved by era of surgery, mainly explained by improved survival between stages I and II. Female gender was a significant risk factor for death or transplantation. For male patients, there was an increased risk of death when birthweight was lower than expected in relation to gestational age.
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