Healthcare-associated Infections in Pediatric Cardiovascular Surgery Intensive Care Unit between 2016-2020

Objectives: Healthcare-associated infections are the most common problem in intensive care unit worldwide. Children with congenital heart diseases have many complications such as developmental problems, respiratory tract infections, endocarditis,pneumonia and after long-term hospital and intensive care stays and surgeries patients become vulnerable to healthcare-associated infections. Patients and Methods: The study presents the frequency of infection, microorganisms in patients hospitalized at SBÜ Koşuyolu High Spesialization Research and Training Hospital pediatric cardiovascular surgery intensive care unit between 2016-2020. Results: One hundred-eight HAI episodes were seen in 83 of 1920 patients hospitalized in pediatric cardiovascular surgery intensive care unit between 2016-2020.HAI rates varied between 4.8% and 7.77%. In the 5-year period,a total of 118 different microorganisms were detected.Among all microorganisms, Candida species (n: 43, 36.4%) ranked first. central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) 53 (49%), ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP)40 (37%), surgical site infection (SSI) 8 (6.5%), catheter -associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) 7 (6%) Conclusion: Healthcare-associated infections are require special attention in pediatric cardiovascular intensive care units. In order to prevent, innovations such as bundle applications should be implemented as well as personnel training.

Investigation of anxiety, depression and perceived caregiving burden in parents of pediatric patients undergoing open heart surgery and being followed up in intensive care

Objectives: This study aims to investigate the relationship between anxiety levels and perceived caregiver burden in mothers of children who had undergone Congenital Heart Disease Surgery (CHDS) and who were followed up in the intensive care unit with the surgical type and clinical variables applied. Patients and Methods: The study was conducted with the mothers of both patient groups who underwent Palliative Surgery (PS) (n:32) or Corrective (Biventricular) Repair (CR) (n:35) in the Pediatric Cardiovascular Surgery clinic of Istanbul Koşuyolu High Specialty Educational and Research Hospital. Sociodemographic-Clinical Data Form, Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Standardized Mini-Mental Test, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI TX I-II), and Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI) were applied to the parents. Results: The rate of interventional birth was higher in the PS group whereas there was no difference between the PS and CR groups in terms of age, gender, birth weights, and presence of additional diseases (p: 0.001). There was no difference between maternal education levels and pregnancy duration. This difference was not significant even though the mean age of the mothers in the CR group was higher compared to the PS group. The mean STAI-S scores of the PS group (State Anxiety) were lower than the CR group, and the STAI-T scores of the PS group (Trait Anxiety) were higher. The ZBI scores were significantly higher in the PS group (p: 0.03) Conclusion: Congenital heart diseases and surgical interventions, as a result, are a major source of distress for affected families. Mothers are mainly affected by this situation. Changes in the mental status of the caregiver may have serious adverse effects on the operated child at every stage of the disease. Caregiving in parents is perceived as a burden and increased anxiety leads to different psychiatric clinical manifestations. Therefore, it is recommended that parents of children who have undergone congenital cardiac surgery receive routine psychiatric support from the early stages of the disease.

Do platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) have a predictive value on pediatric extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) results?

Background: It is difficult to predict the complications and prognosis of ECMO, which is gaining widespread use in patients with pediatric surgery. Platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) are emerging inflammatory markers that can be calculated from complete blood count, which is a cheap and easily accessible laboratory analysis. The ratios between cellular elements in peripheral blood have been demonstrated to provide information on inflammation, infection, and immune response. Methods: Sixty-seven patients who needed ECMO application after undergoing pediatric cardiovascular surgery in our clinic, between May 2005 and April 2020, were included in this study. The age of patients varied between 4 days and 17 years with a mean of 30.59 ± 147.26 months. Results: The relationships between PLR or NLR values and various blood parameters and blood gas results were found to be statistically nonsignificant in our group of pediatric ECMO recipients. Even if the effect of PLR and NLR values on mortality and prognosis is statistically nonsignificant in patients who need ECMO after congenital heart surgery, PLR and NLR are typically elevated in the postoperative period. An increase in these values above a certain threshold may be a statistically significant indicator for the prediction of mortality. Conclusions: There are few studies in the literature concerning PLR and NLR values in patients with pediatric heart surgery. We consider this study will make way for new studies in the future.

The Real Need for Regenerative Medicine in the Future of Congenital Heart Disease Treatment

Bioabsorbable materials made from polymeric compounds have been used in many fields of regenerative medicine to promote tissue regeneration. These materials replace autologous tissue and, due to their growth potential, make excellent substitutes for cardiovascular applications in the treatment of congenital heart disease. However, there remains a sizable gap between their theoretical advantages and actual clinical application within pediatric cardiovascular surgery. This review will focus on four areas of regenerative medicine in which bioabsorbable materials have the potential to alleviate the burden where current treatment options have been unable to within the field of pediatric cardiovascular surgery. These four areas include tissue-engineered pulmonary valves, tissue-engineered patches, regenerative medicine options for treatment of pulmonary vein stenosis and tissue-engineered vascular grafts. We will discuss the research and development of biocompatible materials reported to date, the evaluation of materials in vitro, and the results of studies that have progressed to clinical trials.

PD34 São Paulo Congenital Heart Corrections: Three-Years' Assist Registry

Introduction:Death from congenital heart disease (CHD) can be avoided, contributing to reduced infant mortality. The objective of this study was to identify the profile of patients undergoing surgical correction for CHD in three São Paulo State hospitals, and to determine factors that contribute to morbidity and mortality.Methods:The Voluntary Pediatric Cardiovascular Surgery Multicenter Registry (ASSIST) was created in 2014 through a Research Grant Program for the Public Healthcare System (Pesquisas para o Sistema Único de Saúde, PPSUS)* project, a federal-state joint strategic public policies research grant, coordinated by the Hospital das Clínicas of Faculdade de Medicina of Universidade de São Paulo (InCor-HCFMUSP-SP) and Ribeirão Preto's Hospital das Clínicas, both linked to the São Paulo University Medical School.Results:We analyzed 1,842 patients, with an average age of 1.2 (range 0.4–8.6) years, 50.9 percent were male. Procedural complexity was classified as “Risk Adjustment in Congenital Heart Surgery” version 1 score, RACHS-1: 18.2 percent RACHS1, 25.5 percent RACHS2, 41.2 percent RACHS3, 9.6 percent RACHS4 and 5.4 percent RACHS5–6. Overall hospital mortality was 12.2 percent, and preoperative risk factors included: age <30 days (Odds Ratio, OR = 1.7 p = 0.012), prolonged ICU admission (OR = 3.3 p = 0.001). Other significant factors were RACHS score >4 (OR = 5.3 p < 0.001), heart dysfunction (OR = 3.4 p = 0.001), sepsis (OR = 3 p = 0.001), hemodynamic or surgical re-intervention required (OR = 6.2 p < 0.001), cardiorespiratory arrest (CPR, OR = 24.9 p < 0.001) and renal failure (OR = 5.4 p<0.001). The frequency of related morbidity was 16.2 heart failure, 7.1 percent arrythmia, 5.9 percent pneumonia, 5.9 percent pneumotórax, 4.2 percent pleural and pericardial effusion, 10 percent mechanical ventiation > 7 days, 13.2 percent late sternal closure, 2.8 percent had wound infection, 3.7 percent neurological alterations, 2.3 percent diaphragmatic dysfunction, 11.5 percent CPR, 3.2 percent renal failure, 4.5 percent sepsis, 55.1 percent length of hospital stay longer than 5 days with 45.8 percent postoperative hospital admission longer than 15 days and 6.1 percent needed surgical or hemodynamic re-intervention.Conclusions:The information collected in the ASSIST registry was of great importance in the São Paulo State CHD surgical practice evaluation. Morbi-mortality related factors elicited critical points and allowed improvement actions. Excluding age and intrinsic procedure complexity, identified outcome modifier factors can be manageable, aiming to increase patient safety and program resolubility or performance.