Pediatric Cardiology

Pediatric Cardiology is the specialty that deals with heart problems in babies, children and adolescents – from birth until late teenage years. Pediatric cardiologists diagnose and treat both congenital (present from birth) and acquired (developed later) heart diseases in children. What they do: Pediatric cardiologists evaluate children with suspected or known heart disease, perform and interpret tests like ECG, echocardiogram (heart ultrasound) and Holter monitoring, assess heart murmurs, chest pain, fainting, palpitations and bluish discoloration (cyanosis), guide treatment with medicines or catheter-based procedures, and work closely with pediatric cardiac surgeons when an operation is needed. Common conditions treated: congenital heart diseases (holes in the heart such as ASD, VSD; complex defects like Tetralogy of Fallot; valve and vessel abnormalities), heart rhythm problems (arrhythmias), heart failure, cardiomyopathy, heart involvement due to infections (e.g. rheumatic fever, Kawasaki disease, viral myocarditis), high blood pressure in children, chest pain and syncope (fainting) related to heart, and follow-up of children who have had heart surgery. When to visit: if your baby has poor feeding, fast breathing, sweating while feeding, poor weight gain or looks bluish around lips or fingers; if an older child has fast heartbeat, chest pain, easy tiredness, breathing difficulty on exertion, fainting spells or leg swelling; if a heart murmur is detected by a doctor; if there is a family history of congenital heart disease, sudden cardiac death at a young age, or inherited heart rhythm problems; or when your obstetrician’s fetal scan shows a possible heart defect in the baby. Diagnostic and treatment methods: detailed history and physical examination focused on child’s growth and development, ECG, echocardiogram and Doppler studies, Holter and event monitoring for arrhythmias, exercise tests in older children, CT/MRI of the heart when needed, cardiac catheterization and device procedures to close some holes or open narrowed valves or vessels, medication for heart failure, rhythm control and blood pressure, endocarditis and rheumatic fever prophylaxis, coordination with pediatric cardiac surgeons for timely surgery, and long-term follow-up into adolescence and transition to adult congenital heart care.