Increased survival in patients with congenital heart disease at last thirty years is associated with the improvements in diagnoses and treatment of congenital heart disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate the therapeutic interventional cardiologic procedures, its results and complications which were performed to newborns between 2000-2011 in Hacettepe University İhsan Doğramacı Children’s Hospital retrospectively and compare the findings with the literature.

In this study, between February 2000 and November 2011, 210 therapeutic interventions performed to 200 newborn and premature patients by Pediatric Cardiology Unit were evaluated. Subjects’ ages range from 1 to 49 day and body weights from 1200 to 5800 g. 146 (%73) case were male, 54 (%27) case were female. Mean fluoroscopy exposure was 16.8 minutes and mean procedure duration was 78.3 minutes. There were 73 (%35) balloon atrial septostomy, 44 (%21) balloon aort angioplasty, 37 (%18) balloon pulmonary valvuloplasty, 28 (%13) balloon aort valvuloplasty, 8 (%4) arterial duct stenting procedures. More than one process was performed in 10 (%5) of all procedures. 188 (%90) interventions were successful, 9 (%4) were partially successful and 13 (%6) were unsuccessful. 36 (%17) minor and 25 (%12) major complications were observed during the procedures. The most frequent complication was bleeding from catheter insertion site. There were no procedure related death was observed.

In conclusion interventional cardiologic procedures in neonatal period are an alternative treatment to surgery and a bridging therapy to surgery for improving the patient’s clinical status before the operation and life saving. Although procedure related complication rates higher in neonatal subjects now, it is thought that in future with the advances in imaging technology, procedure techniques and more experienced pediatric cardiologists, lower body weight newborns will be treated with interventional cardiologic procedures with lower complication rates.