Congenital Heart Disease in Children

The goal of this clinical trial is to evaluate whether a Just-in-Time Adaptive Intervention (JITAI)-based digital exercise rehabilitation program can improve postoperative recovery in children after congenital heart disease (CHD) surgery. The study will examine whether this system can: Improve cardiopulmonary endurance, cardiac function, and muscle strength Increase rehabilitation adherence and enhance training experience while reducing exercise-related fear Researchers will compare children receiving the adaptive digital exercise rehabilitation program with those receiving standard postoperative rehabilitation to determine whether the digital program provides additional clinical and behavioral benefits. Participants will: Wear non-invasive monitoring devices to collect real-time physiological data Engage in daily structured exercise rehabilitation sessions guided by the digital system Receive adaptive adjustments in exercise intensity based on real-time physiological feedback Complete questionnaires on recovery, emotional status, and rehabilitation experience

The goal of this randomized controlled trial is to evaluate the effectiveness of video conferencing for the delivery of live-supervised, real-time cardiac rehabilitation (CR) exercise training to groups of adolescents with congenital heart disease (CHD) in their homes. Participants will be randomized to either the remote cardiac rehab (RCR) group or active control group. The RCR group will participate in live, group-based exercise training (3-5 participants per exercise session), in their homes 3 days per week for 45 minutes over 12-weeks. Exercise sessions will be led and supervised by a live health coach via telehealth video technology. The active control group will be provided informational handouts on health exercise for their cardiac diagnosis. The primary aim is to compare between group changes (0-12-weeks) in cardiorespiratory fitness (VO2peak). Secondary aims are to compare between group changes (0-12-weeks) in cardiac function (echocardiography), lean body mass, and physical frailty. Exploratory aims will compare between group changes (0-12-weeks) in physical function, quality of life, skeletal muscle function, and physical activity self-efficacy. Additionally, exploratory aims will explore the impact of demographic characteristics, program participation, program satisfaction, and daily physical activity on changes in cardiorespiratory fitness.

The proposed study will be a prospective, randomized, double blind, placebo controlled trial to compare the use of a continuous infusion versus intermittent ketorolac on postoperative patients in the pediatric cardiovascular ICU. We intend to determine if the continuous infusion leads to a decreased utilization of opiates when compared to intermittent ketorolac.

The incidence of moderate to severe congenital heart disease (CHD) in the United States is estimated to be 6 per 1000 live-born full term infants. Recent advances in pediatric cardiology, surgery and critical care have significantly improved the survival rates of patients with CHD leading to an increase in prevalence in both children and adults. Children with CHD significant enough to require cardiac surgery frequently also undergo non-cardiac surgical procedures. Analysis of the Pediatric Health Information System database between 2004 and 2012 demonstrated that 41% of children who had undergone surgery to correct CHD in the first year of life also underwent at least one non-cardiac surgery by age 5. With this increased demand for non-cardiac procedures, anesthesiologists, pediatricians and other healthcare providers will encounter patients with repaired or unrepaired CHD and other cardiac diseases in their practice. However, the information provided by national databases lack granularity and the information from single institutional data is limited. This project aims to address this knowledge gap in quantifying the risk for cardiac patients coming for noncardiac procedures and identify the health care resource utilization and system to best care for this patient population. To conduct this study, we will create a multi-institutional collaboration between large and small centers to create a unique dataset spanning all the different variables that need to be considered in risk prediction for these patients including patient variables, hospital setting, and providers. The aggregate multiinstitutional data set may be used for benchmarking for national quality improvement efforts.

Children undergoing cardiac surgery or cardiac catheterization often experience significant stress and anxiety during the preoperative period. A prospective, observational assessment of the preoperative/ preinterventional phase in 100 children undergoing cardiac surgery or cardiac catheterization at the Deutsches Herzzentrum der Charité demonstrated a considerable proportion of pediatric patients present with clinically relevant levels of anxiety before these procedures. Several aspects of the preoperative workflow were identified as potentially modifiable to improve the preparation of children and their families. Based on these findings, changes in clinical practice were implemented. These measures aim to create a more supportive environment for children undergoing cardiac interventions or surgery. The investigators now aim to re-evaluate the current preoperative preparation process for children undergoing cardiac surgery or cardiac catheterization at the Deutsches Herzzentrum der Charité and to assess its impact on preoperative stress and anxiety levels. Another 100 children will be enrolled for this follow-up assessment (100 children assessed at baseline in 2025, 100 children to be assessed in 2026, starting end of January 2026). Anxiety and stress and other patient reported outcome and experience measures as well as procedural and clinical data are assessed using validated questionnaires and CRFs prior to the procedure. The perspectives of parents or legal guardians and members of the clinical care team will also be considered to provide a comprehensive view of the preoperative experience.

Patients younger than 18 scheduled for congenital heart surgery will be assessed during and post-operatively as well as at the first follow-up after 9-12 month for the novel biomarker sST2. We will assess the marker independently and in evaluation with other blood biomarkers to evaluate sings of heart failure. Compared to established biomarkers, sST2 promises thereby to be less variable to factors like age or acute kidney injury, rendering it potentially more reliable in the field of congenital cardiac surgery.

Feasibility and efficiency of Screening for Neurodevelopmental Disorders by an Advanced Practice Nurse in Children aged 1 to 5 with Congenital Heart Disease

Determine 1) the impact of abnormal fetal cerebrovascular physiology with neurodevelopmental delay (ND) outcomes and 2) how this relationship is modified by patient and environmental factors such as chronic congenital heart disease (CCHD) lesion, maternal-fetal environment, and social determinants of heath (SDOH) in a diverse population using a multicenter design. Pregnant women will be approached during one of their fetal cardiology clinic visits.

Pediatric cardiac patients undergoing surgical anesthesia are at an increased risk of poor neurologic outcome (20-50%). Unattenuated anesthetic exposure and pain contributes to physiologic perturbations that may increase neurologic morbidity. Because of the often-large exposure to anesthetic agents in these cardiac children, at such a young age and the potential modifying anesthetic practice that could lead to improved neurodevelopmental outcomes and surgical recovery is paramount. Regional anesthesia such as thoracic epidurals provide effective analgesia and reduced intraoperative anesthetic needed but carry devastating sequelae neurological risks of epidural hematomas after anticoagulation during cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). Recently, a newly described erector spinae plane block (ESPB) is superficial to neuraxial or vascular structures, providing opportunity to be placed with less risk for surgery requiring CPB. This block has been described as effective regional anesthesia for adult cardiac surgery.

This study is to develop a 12-week community-based remote cardiac rehabilitation program for pediatric patients with complex congenital heart disease and to assess its validity and safety. For these children, a multidisciplinary approach including pediatric rehabilitation medicine, pediatric thoracic surgery, pediatrics, pediatric psychiatry, sports science, and nutrition is essential, but such comprehensive services are rarely available in Korea. As a result, pediatric cardiac rehabilitation at the community level is nearly nonexistent. Recent long-term retrospective cohort studies suggest that maintaining regular physical activity and aerobic capacity from early childhood significantly reduces future cardiovascular complications, emphasizing the importance of early pediatric cardiac rehabilitation. However, participation in existing programs is low due to limited accessibility. The investigators hypothesize that a community-based remote cardiac rehabilitation program for these patients is both valid and safe. Participants will be children aged 8-18 years diagnosed with complex congenital heart disease , at least 3 months post-surgery, and stable cardiovascular status. Interventions include supervised and self-directed cardiac rehabilitation exercises. Monitoring (heart rate, SpO2, ECG) will be performed in real-time, with non-real-time data collection of physical activity using smartwatches. The intervention lasts 12 weeks with a 12-week follow-up. Validity measures include baseline evaluation, adherence, dropout rate, participant and parent satisfaction, and changes in cardiopulmonary exercise capacity, physical activity, body composition, fitness (6-minute walk, strength, flexibility, respiratory muscle strength), and questionnaires (physical activity, quality of life, exercise satisfaction, depression, psychological state). Safety will be assessed by monitoring adverse events, vital signs, fatigue (Borg scale), and pain before and after exercise.

Neurodevelopmental impairment due to delayed brain development and brain injury is a fundamental problem in children with critical congenital heart disease (CCHD). Significant longterm motor-, cognitive-, and behavioral problems are the result of early postnatally and perioperatively induced brain injury. Allopurinol, a xanthine oxidase inhibitor, prevents the formation of toxic free oxygen radicals, thereby limiting hypoxia-reperfusion damage. Both animal and neonatal studies suggest that administration of allopurinol reduces hypoxic-ischemic brain injury, is cardioprotective, and safe. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of allopurinol administered early postnatally and perioperatively in children with a CCHD requiring cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass.

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if a computer software program (cardiac simulator) for surgical planning will lead to improvements in patient care by decreasing the incidence of unsuccessful interventions and reinterventions for pediatric patients with congenital heart disease. It is not a commercially available device to treat congenital heart disease in pediatric patients. The main aims are: To provide safe pre-operative testing of surgical approaches with a computer model cardiac simulator. To aid surgeons in envisioning different surgical approaches for each individual patient. To bolster the standard of care surgical planning discussions which will be particularly useful for patients with unique, complex congenital heart disease. Participants will: Consent to being randomized with a 50% chance of receiving standard of care "on the fly" surgical planning discussion as is current practice or assisted surgical planning discussion with the aid of the computer software cardiac simulator. Receive results of their computer simulated findings during their surgical planning discussion if they are in the cardiac simulator group.