Browsing by Author "Parezanović, Vojislav (14325763000)"

Introduction Infective endocarditis is relatively rare in pediatric population, but can result in significant morbidity and mortality. Children with bicuspid aortic valve are at higher risk of developing infective endocarditis as compared to the general population. Our objective is to emphasize the importance of rapid diagnosis and proper treatment of infective endocarditis in patients with bicuspid aortic valve with the aim of preventing serious adverse events. Case outline We report a case of a 13-year-old girl with a newly diagnosed bicuspid aortic valve who developed infective endocarditis with severe complications and underwent cardiac surgery. Recurrent fever and anemia, as well as cardiac murmur, were present for six months prior to diagnosing infective endocarditis. During the course of illness, only one of many blood cultures taken was positive for Streptococcus sanguinis. Conclusion Patients with bicuspid aortic valve require careful evaluation for infective endocarditis, especially if recurrent fever associated with anemia is present. Delayed diagnosis of infective endocarditis is associated with serious complications. © 2022, Serbia Medical Society. All rights reserved.

Introduction/Objective Although cardiac tumors in the pediatric population are found infrequently, their occurrence is constant and with occasional variations. The purpose of this study is to show our experience with surgical options of these masses in two leading national university-level pediatric centers over four decades. Methods This retrospective study is presenting a total number of 24 surgically treated pediatric patients who have been operated on 1998–2020. There were 16 children with primary masses and eight children with metastatic cardiac tumors. Two patients with tumor-like intracardiac masses were not included in the series but had been mentioned as diagnostic challenges. Our patients did not have cardiac transplantation options. Results The average age of our patients was five and a half years, and the most frequent operated tumor was the cardiac myxoma. Four children had neurological symptoms. There were two deaths, one in the primary tumor group and one metastatic patient misdiagnosed as a primary tumor in the early ages of our department. We had two recurrent cases, a girl with Carney complex, and an infant with an extremely rare form of cardiac malignancy after a myxoma extraction. One child required a permanent pacemaker insertion. Conclusion Although rare, the pediatric cardiac tumors can be a source of different life-threatening conditions and lifelong sequelae. Therefore, special considerations should be paid to the diagnostic and surgical modalities of their treatment. © 2023, Serbia Medical Society. All rights reserved.

Introduction Pulmonary artery stenosis (PS) is a congenital heart defect which occurs in 10% of all congenital heart defects. Pulmonary balloon valvuloplasty (BVP) has been the treatment of choice of PS over the last 30 years.; Methods The study included 88 patients diagnosed with PS. The patients were divided into three groups based on the severity of the disease. Also, they were divided into two age groups in order to analyze the frequency of complications. Hemodynamic measurements and echocardiography results were recorded before, 24-36 hours after BVP and at the end of follow-up.; Objective The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of this method based on middle-term hospital follow-up, and safety of BVP based on our experience.; Results The studied group involved patients of average age 3.75±4.3 years (20 days to 17 years). Immediately after BVP a significant decrease of pressure gradient across the pulmonary valve (PV) was recorded in all patients; this result was similar in all 3 groups of patients regardless of the severity of stenosis (p<0.001). Complications of BVP occurred most commonly in children up to 12 months of age (ventricular tachycardia 4.5% and supraventricular tachycardia 6.8%). Pulmonary valve insufficiency after dilatation occurred in 6.6% of cases, and was most common in children aged up to 12 months. In 87 (98.9%) patients BVP was a definitive solution, and a significant residual stenosis was not recorded during follow-up.; Conclusion BVP is a safe and effective procedure in the treatment of isolated PS in children, regardless of the severity of stenosis but also regardless of patients’age. © 2014, Srpsko Lekarsko Drutsvo. All rights reserved.

Introduction Arterial switch operation (ASO) is a cardiosurgi-cal method of choice for complete anatomical correction of transposition of great arteries. Improvement of this procedure has made considerably improved the outcome and long-term prognosis of children born with this complex congenital heart disease. Objective The aim of this study was to estimate the success rate of ASO through retrospective analysis of mortality and late complications. Methods This study included 57 children operated from 1stJanuary 2005 until 31st December 2009. Parameters that could influence the outcome of surgery were investigated. The following late complications were investigated: neopulmonary artery stenosis, neoaortic stenosis and regurgitation, as well as clinical signs of heart failure. Results Early postoperative mortality was 15.8% (9/57 patients). During follow-up (8 to 72 months, average 36.5 months) there were no lethal outcomes. On the last echocardiography examination, 73.2% patients had neoaortic regurgitation and 67.4% patients had neopulmonary regurgitation, but all of them were mild in intensity. Neopulmonary stenosis had 32.6% of patients, but only two had moderate or severe stenosis. No one had ischemic ECG changes. Three reinterventions were performed due to serious residual problems: surgical correction of neoaortic stenosis, surgical correction of neopulmonary stenosis and transcatether balloon dilatation for aortic reco-arctation. At the end of the follow-up period, only one of 46 consistently followed patients had signs of heart failure which required therapy (2.2%), while the majority of patients were without any symptoms and with good effort tolerance. Conclusion Arterial switch operation has been successfully performed at our institution, with acceptable perioperative mortality and excellent late outcome. © 2014, Serbia Medical Society. All rights reserved.

Purpose: Oral propranolol has been recently approved for infantile hemangiomas (IHs), but potential side effects stay a challenge. We sought to make an additional assessment on oral propranolol safety for this indication. Materials and methods: Prospective study included 108 infants consecutively treated for IHs at the University Children’s Hospital Tirsova, Belgrade from January 2010 to December 2013. Propranolol was administered orally at a daily dose of 0.5 mg/kg and doubled every 48 hours in the absence of side effects until reaching the maximum dose of 2 mg/kg daily. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure and heart rate were measured every 48 hours with clinical observation. Heart rate was monitored by standard electrocardiogram (ECG) and 48-hour Holter ECG. Results: Statistically significant, but asymptomatic decreases in systolic blood pressure and heart rate recorded by Holter ECG were observed during the first doubling of dose and then remained stable. Arrhythmias were not detected. Despite mild sleep disturbance observed in 31% of infants in the hospital milieu, Holter monitoring indicated circadian rhythm maintenance. Conclusions: Oral propranolol for IHs does not remarkably affect heart rhythm including circadian variations throughout hospital initiation. Therefore, there is no necessity for Holter monitoring in additional safety assessment. © 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Backrounds: Fetal arrhythmias represent a significant cause of fetal morbidity and mortality and occur in approximately 1-3% of pregnancies. The unknown fetal arrhythmias are the cause of intrauterine fetal demise in as many as 3-10% of cases, as well as the cause of unexplained fetal hydrops or premature births. Methods: A fetal echocardiography test makes it possible to notice structural heart defects at very early stages of pregnancy. The ultrasound heart rate monitoring also involves the use of specific Doppler methods. Heart rhythm disorders may occur in the form of tachycardia (sinus tachycardia (ST), supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) and atrial flutter (AF)) or in the form of bradycardia (sinus bradycardia (SB), atrial bigeminy (AB) and complete AV block). The most frequently diagnosed fetal heart rhythm disorders are isolated extrasystoles with no clinical significance. Results: In this study, we have examined 7863 fetuses (182 were multiple gestations). Out of the total number of examined patients, 572 fetuses (7.23%) had pathological heart features, while 127 (1.61%) had some form of rhythm disorder. Conclusions: The ability to recognize the heart rhythm disorder and commence the treatment in a timely manner increases the treatment success rate. Copyright: © 2022 The Author(s)

Introduction Frasier syndrome (FS) is a genetic form of glomerulopathy, which results from mutations in the Wilms' tumour suppressor gene (WT1). Proteinuria in FS has been traditionally considered unresponsive to any medication and FS inevitably progresses to end stage renal failure. Case Outline We present a patient with FS who had atypical clinical manifestation and unusual beneficial antiproteinuric response to renin-angiotensin system (RAS) inhibitors given in combination with indomethacin. After 13 years of follow-up, the patient is now 17-year old with normal renal functions and no proteinuria. Conclusion RAS inhibitors combined with indomethacin showed beneficial effect in our patient. Thus, this combination might be the initial treatment of patients with FS. If this treatment strategy was not satisfied for at least 3 months, then CsA would be considered to be administered taking account of the nephrotoxicity and the increased risk of malignancy. Further prospective study is required to clarify this issue.

The outcomes for patients with congenital heart defects (CHD) have significantly improved, with most reaching adulthood, which raises clinical dilemmas regarding sports participation. Children and adolescents with CHD, whether uncorrected, palliatively, or completely corrected, can often engage in sports. However, they are frequently restricted due to unwarranted fears from parents, coaches, sports medicine physicians, and pediatricians. When determining the eligibility of these individuals for sports participation, it is crucial to understand the anatomy and hemodynamic status of the congenital heart defect, along with the type and intensity of the sports activity. This review compiles guidelines from European and American cardiology associations aimed at facilitating decision-making in everyday clinical practice. The lack of literature on this specific topic is inevitable, requiring physicians to individualize recommendations for each patient while adhering to guidelines. © 2025, Croatian Paediatric Society. All rights reserved.

Introduction Diagnosis of neonatal coarctation of the aorta (CoA) still presents a challenge in routine practice because of absence of reliable morphologic and functional parameters for early detection of this congenital heart defect in newborns. Objective The aim of this study is to identify easy obtainable two-dimensional echocardiographic parameters for detection of the CoA in newborns. Methods Echocardiographic evaluation was performed in 30 newborns with CoA and 20 healthy neonates (control group). Measurements of the proximal transverse arch (PTA), distal transverse arch (DTA), isthmus, distance between the left common carotid artery (LCCA) at the origin of the left subclavian artery (LSA), were obtained by two-dimensional echocardiography. Aortic arch hypoplasia was defined using Mouleart, Karl and Mee criteria, and Z-value. Index 1 was calculated as a ratio of DTA and distance between origins LCCA-LSA, Index 2 was calculated as a ratio of the ascending aorta and the distance between LCCA-LSA origins, and Index 3 was calculated as a ratio of PTA and distance between LCCA-LSA origins. Results Index 1 was significantly lower in patients with CoA in comparison with control group (0.50 vs. 1.39; p≤0.01). A cutoff point at 0.39, for Index 1, showed a sensitivity of 92% and specificity of 99% for the diagnosis of neonatal CoA, while cut off points at 0.69 and 0.44, for Index 2 and Index 3, showed the highest sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of CoA in newborns. Conclusion By using these echo indexes, two-dimensional echocardiographic aortic arch measurement becomes a simple, reliable noninvasive method for the evaluation of aortic coarctation in newborns and may lead to earlier diagnosis and subsequent surgical correction. © 2015 Serbia Medical Society. All rightsreserved.

Introduction/Objective Transcatheter closure is a well-established procedure for treatment of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). We aimed to make a comparison between transcatheter PDA occlusion with Flipper coil and Amplatzer Duct Occluder (ADO) and to determine the incidence and significance of procedural complications. Methods Between November 2004 and October 2014, 148 patients were eligible for transcatheter PDA closure at the University Children’s Hospital in Belgrade, Serbia. The median age was 5.9 years (the range of 0.9 years to 17.3 years) and the median weight was 21 kg (the range of 8.8 kg to 94 kg). Follow-up evaluations with Doppler echocardiogram were performed at one day, three months, and one and two years after the PDA occlusion. Results Median narrowest PDA diameter was 1.5 mm (the range of 0.5 mm to 5.6 mm). Flipper coil was used for PDA closure in 84 (59.2%) and ADO in 58 patients (40.8%). There was no significant difference in the rate of immediate complete closure between the coil and the ADO group (86.9% vs. 75.9%, p = 0.089), but a significantly higher rate of complete closure was achieved with ADO at one day (83.3% vs. 98.3%, p = 0.004), three months (85.7% vs. 100%, p = 0.002), and both one and two years after the implantation (91.7% vs. 100%, p = 0.041). In total, 12 complications occurred during the procedure, seven of which with coil and five with ADO occlusion of PDA. Conclusion Transcatheter closure of PDA using both coils and ADOs is a very safe and effective procedure. ADO proved superior to coil in terms of complete closure rate as early as one day after the procedure. © 2017, Serbia Medical Society. All rights reserved.

Introduction Critical congenital heart diseases (CHD) are mostly duct-dependent and require stable systemic-pulmonary communication. In order to maintain patency of the ductus arteriosus (DA), the first line treatment is Prostaglandin E1 and the second step is the surgical creation of aortic-pulmonary shunt. To reduce surgical risk in neonates with the critical CHD, transcatheter stenting of DA can be performed in selected cases. Case Outline A four-month old infant was diagnosed with the pulmonary artery atresia with ventricular septal defect (PAA/VSD). The left pulmonary artery was perfused from DA, and the right lung through three major aortopulmonary collaterals (MAPCAs). A coronary stent was placed in the long and critically stenotic DA, with final arterial duct diameter of 3.5 mm, and significantly increased blood supply to the left lung. After the procedure, the infant's status was improved with regard to arterial oxygen saturation, feeding and weight gain. During the follow-up, one year later, aortography revealed in-stent stenosis. The left pulmonary artery, as well as the branches, was well-developed and the decision was made to proceed with further surgical correction. Conclusion Stenting of DA can be an effective alternative to primary surgical correction in selected patients with duct-dependent CHD.