Aims and objectives
Current estimates range of the incidence of congenital heart disease is from 8 to 12 per 1 000 live births worldwide [1].
In Azerbaijan about 800-1000 babies born with congenital cardiovascular anomalies every year.
Echocardiography is method of choice for initial pre- and postnatal diagnostic of congenital cardiovascular diseases [2].
However,
due to some factors its sensitivity and specifity can decrease.
Delayed diagnosis of critical congenital heart diseases with pulmonary atresia or severe stenosis of pulmonary artery or its branches,
or if they left untreated...
Methods and materials
20 patients with various congenital heart diseases (2 newborns,
4 infants,
12 toddlers/teens and 2 adults,
gender 45 % (male) vs.
55 % (female)) were included in study.
Echocardiography was an initial diagnostic tool in all 20 cases.
Poor acoustic window and complexity of cardiovascular anomalies in most of the cases associated with heterotaxy syndrome in two of them were found to be important factors responsible for decrease of echocardiography’s sensitivity in assessment of pulmonary arteries.
All pediatric patients had undergone thorax- CTA under sedation...
Results
Measurements of RVOT,
the main pulmonary artery at the level of its bifurcation and diameters of its brunches were performed.
All parameters were indexed to BSA. All data were analysed using appropriate statistical software.
Quantitative variables were expressed as means ± SD (standard deviations).
P value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
In 15 patients with Fallot tetralogy mean ± SD indexed MPA diameter were 11±10 mm,
RPA - 8±5 mm,
LPA - 9±7mm (in all 15cases were observed subvalvular pulmonary stenosis,
associated with hypoplasia...
Conclusion
In all cases CTA has proven its informativeness and led to the correct choice of treatment strategy.
Optimization of the technical parameters to ensure low dose diagnosis imaging and detailed assessment by appropriate postprocessing techniques made CTA with its fast acquisition time and excellent spatial resolution an accurate method of evaluation of pulmonary arteries as part of complex congenital cardiovascular anomalies in adult and paediatric population.
References
ADDIN EN.REFLIST 1. Hoffman JIe.
The global burden of congenital heart disease.
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2. D'Alto M,
Dimopoulos K,
Budts W,
Diller GP,
Di Salvo G,
Dellegrottaglie S,
et al.
Multimodality imaging in congenital heart disease-related pulmonary arterial hypertension.
Heart.
2016;102(12):910-8.
3. Liberman RF,
Getz KD,
Lin AE,
Higgins CA,
Sekhavat S,
Markenson GR,
et al.
Delayed diagnosis of critical congenital heart defects: trends and associated factors.
Pediatrics.
2014;134(2):e373-81.
4. Hellinger JC,
Pena A,
Poon M,
Chan FP,
Epelman M.
Pediatric computed tomographic...