Thirty years and 1663 consecutive Norwood procedures: Has survival plateaued?

OBJECTIVE: Hypoplastic left heart syndrome is one of the most common and challenging lesions requiring surgical intervention in the neonatal period. The Norwood procedure for hypoplastic left heart syndrome was first reported in 1983. The objective of this study was to describe early outcomes after the Norwood procedure at a single institution over 30 years. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study included all patients with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (and variants) who underwent the Norwood procedure between January 1984 and May 2014 at a single institution. The study period was divided into 6 eras: era 1, 1984 to 1988; era 2, 1989 to 1993; era 3, 1994 to 1998; era 4, 1999 to 2003; era 5, 2004 to 2008; and era 6, 2009 to 2014. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality after the Norwood procedure. Binomial point estimates complete with 95% confidence intervals (CL0.95) were computed for the entire cohort and by era. RESULTS: During the study period, 1663 infants underwent the Norwood procedure. Overall in-hospital mortality was 25.9% (CL0.95, 23.8-28.0). Mortality by chronologic era was 40.4% (CL0.95, 34.9-45.9), 33.6% (CL0.95, 29.2-37.9), 28.7% (CL0.95, 22.8-34.6), 14.9% (CL0.95, 10.4-19.3), 11.2% (CL0.95, 7.4-15.0), and 15.7% (CL0.95, 10.3-21.1). Survival was improved in eras 4 to 6 compared with eras 1 to 3 (P all < .03). Anomalous pulmonary drainage, moderate to severe atrioventricular valve regurgitation, lower birth weight, earlier era, younger gestational age, genetic anomaly, preterm birth, race other than white or African-American, and lower weight at the Norwood procedure were associated with increased mortality. Mortality was greatest in patients with 3 or more risk factors. In the best-fitting multiple covariate model, anomalous pulmonary venous drainage, gestational age in weeks, genetic anomaly, and race other than white and African American were statistically significant contributors, after adjusting for era. CONCLUSIONS: Survival after the Norwood procedure has plateaued despite improvements in diagnosis, perioperative care, and surgical techniques. Nonmodifiable patient characteristics are important determinants of the risk of mortality.

Parents' Preferences Regarding Public Reporting of Outcomes in Congenital Heart Surgery.

BACKGROUND: Calls for public reporting of outcomes in congenital heart surgery have led to several different reporting schemes, including a star rating system and benchmark procedure-specific mortality data tables. Important unanswered questions remain about the optimal format and content of public reporting of congenital heart surgery outcomes. METHODS: In conjunction with three parent advocacy groups, we developed a questionnaire to gauge parents' attitudes regarding the format and content of an "optimal" public reporting scheme. Parents were solicited for participation through email lists of members of parent advocacy groups and from a cohort of parents whose children had undergone an STS benchmark procedure of the Society of Thoracic Surgeons at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia after January 1, 2007. RESULTS: The 1,297 responses received provided complete data for analysis. Nearly all the participants were mothers of children with congenital heart disease, and most were white. About half of the children were diagnosed prenatally, and 63% underwent initial repair of the defect in the neonatal period. Parents identified survival statistics, surgeon-specific experience, and complication rates as most important. Presented with three display formats for mortality rates, most parents (89%) identified a numeric procedure-based approach as the best format, and more than half identified the hospital star rating system as the worst format. CONCLUSIONS: Parents of children with congenital heart disease identify survival statistics, surgeon-specific experience, and complication rates as the most important outcome measures to report publicly. Additionally, parents preferred mortality data to be presented in a procedure-specific format using a numeric procedure-based approach, as opposed to the star rating system.

Congenital pulmonary lymphangiectasia and early mortality after stage 1 reconstruction procedures.

OBJECTIVES: Pulmonary lymphangiectasia associated with hypoplastic left heart syndrome with an intact or restrictive atrial septum may result from increased left atrial pressure, and is associated with worse outcomes following staged reconstruction due to lung dysfunction and significant hypoxaemia. Our objective was to characterise the incidence of pulmonary lymphangiectasia in cases of early mortality following stage 1 reconstructions. METHODS: An institutional cardiac surgical database was retrospectively searched for patients who died within 30 days following a stage 1 reconstruction between 1 January, 1984 and 31 December, 2013. During that period, 1669 stage 1 procedures were performed. Autopsy lung specimens were reviewed by a paediatric pathologist. Patients who died of suspected technical issues were excluded. RESULTS: A total of 54 patients were included, and of these seven cases (8.5%) of pulmonary lymphangiectasia were identified. The mean estimated gestational age was 38.2±2.4 weeks, and the mean birth weight was 3.0±0.6 kg. The median interval between surgery and death was 1 day (with a range from 0 to 18 days). The atrial septum was intact in one patient (14.3%), restrictive in three patients (42.9%), and unrestrictive in three patients (42.9%). CONCLUSIONS: Pulmonary lymphangiectasia may develop in hypoplastic left heart syndrome with or without a restrictive atrial septum. As standard prenatal diagnostic evaluations and treatment methods for pulmonary lymphangiectasia are limited, this may be an important contributor to early and late mortality following stage 1 reconstruction for hypoplastic left heart syndrome.

Understanding Adolescent Nonresponsiveness to Text Messages: Lessons from the DepoText Trial.

Urban adolescents face economic, social, and behavioral challenges in adhering to long-term contraceptive use. Use of text messaging reminders has the potential to increase adherence to family planning appointments and to educate patients about safe sexual health practices; however, nonresponsiveness to messages is difficult to interpret and may jeopardize programmatic success. We aimed to understand why adolescent girls enrolled in a randomized, controlled pilot trial (DepoText) designed to increase attendance at family planning visits were periodically nonresponsive to text messages through conducting structured interviews with participants whose text reply rates were less than 100 % during the trial period. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected and classified using descriptive data analysis. Reasons for nonresponsiveness, barriers to continuous cell phone coverage, cell phone plan characteristics, and attitudes toward the DepoText program were the primary endpoints of interest. Most participants (78%) attributed instances of nonresponsiveness to being away from the phone or due to a personal conflict such as school or work. Service interruption due to bill nonpayment (44%), phone loss (28%), and cell phone number change (28%) were significant barriers to continuous coverage during the trial period, and many respondents indicated that the downturn in the economy made it more difficult to maintain their cell phone plan. Almost a third reported having to choose between cell phone and other payments, but the vast majority (88%) considered their cell phone a "need" rather than a "want." Participants universally expressed satisfaction with the text messaging program and reported feeling more connected to the clinic (96%) through the messages serving as reminders (64%), encouragement to assume personal responsibility for their health care (12%), and enhanced personal connection with the clinic staff (4%). Our study suggests that a text messaging program can be used in an urban clinical setting to communicate with adolescent girls about family planning services. While economic barriers to continuous cell phone coverage do exist, adolescents indicate that the text message reminder system can be a valuable tool for enhancing clinic connectedness and promoting autonomy in care-seeking behavior.