Patient Care
Our faculty offer a comprehensive program of specialized care at the Heart Center at Children’s Medical Center for children with congenital and acquired heart diseases. The Heart Center's team of professionals includes cardiologists, cardiac surgeons, cardiac intensivists, neonatologists, and cardiac anesthesiologists. In addition to providing the highest quality clinical and surgical care, we are committed to improving the health of children everywhere by sharing our innovations and research.
Inpatient Services
Our inpatient service is divided between our cardiac intensive care unit and the cardiology inpatient floor, on which all beds have telemetry capability with central monitoring. The inpatient floor functions as a “step-down” unit with the capacity to manage higher-acuity patients, including those with temporary pacemakers and vasoactive infusions. There are usually 20 patients in the cardiac intensive care unit and 20 patients on the cardiology floor. New consultations average three to five per day. About 350 children underwent open-heart surgery in 2009; another 160 underwent closed-heart procedures.
Outpatient Services
Approximately 12,000 cardiology outpatients are seen each year at the Heart Center and regional outreach clinics. Subspecialty cardiology clinics –including heart transplantation, heart failure, arrhythmia, pacemaker, preventive cardiology, and young adult congenital heart disease – are held on a weekly or monthly basis.
Preventive Cardiology Clinic
We offer a preventive cardiology clinic to serve children with hyperlipidemia and hypercholesterolemia and children with metabolic syndrome (obesity, insulin resistance, increased triglycerides, decreased high density lipoprotein, and hypertension). Our team of physicians, dietitians, and nurses provides comprehensive physical assessments and dietary evaluations for patients and their families, with the development of individualized programs, including:
- Diet
- Life style modification
- Treatments, including natural as well as prescription medications