The Children's Heart Center at Phoenix Children's Opens the Only Pediatric Cath Lab in Arizona and the Only Hybrid Catheterization Lab in the Southwest.

PHOENIX -- Congenital Heart Defects Affect One out of 100 Births: New Technologies Are Transforming the Lives of Children with Heart Disease

Congenital heart defects affect one out of every 100 births in the United States. Twice as many children in the United States die each year from congenital heart disease than die from all forms of childhood cancer combined. Most of these babies are diagnosed shortly after birth or en utero. These children need an early diagnosis and specialized pediatric treatment to survive and lead a normal life. Complex surgeries and procedures on hearts smaller than a walnut require the latest technologies and the most skilled pediatric specialists in the nation.

"We're really proud to announce the opening of our new state-of-the-art Cardiac Catheterization Lab, the first pediatric lab in the Southwest to accommodate hybrid procedures - a combination of traditional catheter and surgical therapies," said Julie Vincent, medical director of the new unit. "At Phoenix Children's - its all about the kids. We offer the latest technologies and procedures, geared specifically to children, and they are performed by the most experienced pediatric specialists in the country," she added.

New Procedures Offered at Phoenix Children's Cardiac Catheterization Lab

--Procedures to close unwanted vessels are now routinely performed via transcatheter approach using coils or closure devices. Procedures to relieve aortic and pulmonary valve stenosis are performed using balloon catheters and are often curative. In the past these could only be closed by going on a heart lung machine and requiring a full sternotomy.

--Septal occluder devices have allowed interventional cardiologists to close holes inside the heart that in the past could only be closed by having open heart surgery.

--Interventional cardiologists are teaming up with cardiovascular surgeons to perform "hybrid" procedures. Allowing more transcatheter therapies to be performed on infants and young children who would otherwise need open-heart. The cardiovascular surgeon can obtain access in a more central blood vessel or even directly through the right atria or ventricular free wall so that the interventional cardiologist can close a hole with a device without open heart surgery or cardiopulmonary bypass.

--In electrophysiology, advances have given electro physiologists the ability to place catheters in the heart, identify areas of abnormal electricity and destroy the abnormal tissue causing the disturbances. Phoenix Children's also has latest three-dimensional mapping technology to aid in the treatment of complex arrhythmias.

"We're making amazing progress for kids with heart disease," said Michael Teodori, medical director of the Children's Heart Center. "Surgical mortality rates are now less than five percent, less complex heart defects can be corrected with minimally invasive procedures taking the place of open heart surgery, and better diagnostic tools are helping us diagnose and treat infants earlier. But the best part is that more children are living longer and more normal lives."

Phoenix Children's Hospital is one of the 10 largest free-standing children's hospitals in the nation. The most comprehensive array of pediatric specialists in the state practice at this one organization. The outstanding clinical expertise, as well as high patient volume, and an unwavering commitment to caring only for children, all contribute to Children's leadership position. For information about Phoenix Children's, visit the Hospital's award-winning Web site at www.phoenixchildrens.com.