Comparison of Nutritional Status of Children with Congenital Heart Diseases with Minor Illness of Other Children in a Tertiary Level Hospital.

This cross sectional comparative analytical study was undertaken with the objectives to find out the nutritional status of children with congenital heart disease by anthropometric measurement and was compared it with those of children having minor illness and without any congenital heart disease in indoor and outdoor Department of Paediatrics of Mymensingh Medical College Hospital (MMCH), Mymensingh, Bangladesh from December 2015 to November 2016. Purposive sampling was done. One hundred children aged 6 to 60 months with congenital heart disease confirmed by echocardiogram were taken as Group A and one hundred children of same age and sex matched having minor illness and without any congenital heart disease were taken as Group B. Age of the patients ranged from 6 to 60 months. There was no obvious difference of socio-demographic status between two groups. Most of the patient (64.0%) had acyanotic congenital heart disease among them VSD was commonest (68.8%). Thirty-six percent (36.0%) patient had cyanotic congenital heart disease and among them Tetralogy of Fallots (83.3%) was commonest. There were significant differences regarding weight, height and MUAC values in between two Groups. Underweight (51%), Stunting (50%) and Wasting (29%) all were higher in congenital heart disease than that of Group B where they were 28%, 31% and 13% respectively and the differences were statistically significant (p<0.05). The findings of this study imply that malnutrition is very common among children with congenital heart disease. So, anthropometric measurement should be done in each and every child with congenital heart disease.

National Clinical Guidance for the Management of Cardiovascular Intervention in the COVID-19 Pandemic: From Bangladesh Society of Cardiovascular Interventions (BSCI).

Since the first recorded case of SARS-CoV-2 in Bangladesh on 8th March 2020, COVID-19 has spread widely through different regions of the country, resulting in a necessity to re-evaluate the delivery of cardiovascular services, particularly procedures pertaining to interventional cardiology in resource-limited settings. Given its robust capacity for human-to-human transmission and potential of being a nosocomial source of infection, the disease has specific implications on healthcare systems and health care professionals faced with performing essential cardiac procedures in patients with a suspected or confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19. The limited resources in terms of cardiac catheterization laboratories that can be designated to treat only COVID positive patients are further compounded by the additional challenges of unavailability of widespread rapid testing on-site at tertiary cardiac hospitals in Bangladesh. This document prepared for our nation by the Bangladesh Society of Cardiovascular Interventions (BSCI) is intended to serve as a clinical practice guideline for cardiovascular health care professionals, with a focus on modifying standard practice of care during the COVID-19 pandemic, in order to ensure continuation of adequate and timely treatment of cardiovascular emergencies avoiding hospital-based transmission of SARS-COV-2 among healthcare professionals and the patients. This is an evolving document based on currently available global data and is tailored to healthcare systems in Bangladesh with particular focus on, but not limited to, invasive cardiology facilities (cardiac catheterization, electrophysiology & pacing labs). This guideline is limited to the provision of cardiovascular care, and it is expected that specific targeted pharmaco-therapeutics against SARS-CoV-2 be prescribed as stipulated by the National Guidelines on Clinical Management of Corona virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) published by the Director General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of Bangladesh.