Electrocardiography
In the clinical diagnosis and management of congenital or acquired heart disease, the presence or absence of electrocardiographic (ECG) abnormalities is often helpful. Hypertrophies (of ventricles and atria) and ventricular…
Pathophysiology of Left-to-Right Shunt Lesions
Before discussing the hemodynamic abnormalities of left-to-right shunt lesions, knowledge of the model that will be used throughout this section is helpful. Figure 9-1 is a block diagram of a…
Noninvasive Imaging Tools
An ideal modality used for noninvasive imaging of congenital heart defects should be able to delineate all aspects of the cardiac anatomy, including extracardiac vessels; evaluate physiological parameters such as…
Pathophysiology of Obstructive and Valvular Regurgitation Lesions
This chapter discusses hemodynamic abnormalities of obstructive and valvular regurgitant lesions of congenital and acquired causes. For convenience, they are divided into the following three groups based on their hemodynamic…
Chest Radiography
Chest radiography was an essential part of cardiac evaluation before echocardiography and Doppler studies became widely available to cardiologists. This simple test remains very useful to physicians who do not…
Fetal and Perinatal Circulation
Knowledge of fetal and perinatal circulation is an integral part of understanding the pathophysiology, clinical manifestations, and natural history of CHD, especially anomalies seen in the newborn period. Only a…
Physical Examination
As with the examination of any child, the order and extent of the physical examination of infants and children with potential cardiac problems should be individualized. The more innocuous procedures,…
Invasive Procedures
There are two kinds of invasive procedures that are used in the practice of pediatric cardiology. The first is cardiac catheterization and angiocardiography, which together are used for diagnosis (diagnostic…
Other Noninvasive Investigation Tools
Besides imaging, there are other noninvasive investigative tools that are frequently used in the evaluation of cardiac patients. In this chapter, the following will be discussed. • Stress testing •…
History Taking
As in the evaluation of any other system, history taking is a basic step in cardiac evaluation. Maternal history during pregnancy is often helpful in the diagnosis of congenital heart…
