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Murine Fetal Echocardiography
08:04

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Published on: February 15, 2013

Echocardiographic assessment of pediatric semilunar valve disease

Massimiliano Cantinotti1,2, Raffaele Giordano3, Michele Emdin1

  • 1Foundation G. Monasterio CNR-Regione Toscana, Massa, Pisa, Italy.

Echocardiography (Mount Kisco, N.Y.)
|April 4, 2017
PubMed

Insights

Echocardiography guidelines for pediatric semilunar valve disease need improvement. Current adult standards are insufficient for children, particularly for assessing regurgitant lesions and guiding interventions.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Cardiology
  • Echocardiography
  • Valvular Heart Disease

Background:

  • Semilunar valve disease is a significant concern in pediatric cardiology.
  • Echocardiography is the primary imaging modality for assessment and management.
  • Existing adult echocardiographic guidelines are not directly applicable to pediatric populations.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review and synthesize the existing echocardiography literature for pediatric semilunar valve disease.
  • To identify consistencies, limitations, and gaps in current pediatric echocardiographic assessment and management strategies.
  • To highlight the need for specific pediatric guidelines.

Main Methods:

  • Systematic literature search of the National Library of Medicine.
  • Keywords included aortic stenosis, aortic regurgitation, pulmonary stenosis, pulmonary regurgitation, pediatric, neonates, echocardiographic definition, classification, and evaluation.
  • Inclusion of 38 relevant studies.

Main Results:

  • Doppler and invasive gradients show consistency for stenotic lesions (especially pulmonary stenosis) in children.
  • Quantitative parameters used in adults have limitations in pediatric populations.
  • Heterogeneity exists in Doppler measurements for grading stenosis severity and guiding management; consensus exists for intervention indications.
  • Weak evidence supports quantitative parameters for regurgitant lesions; clear intervention indications are lacking.

Conclusions:

  • Current echocardiographic recommendations for adult semilunar valve disease cannot be directly translated to pediatric patients.
  • Specific pediatric guidelines and standardized assessment methods are urgently needed for semilunar valve disease.
  • Further research is required to establish reliable quantitative parameters and intervention criteria for pediatric valvular heart disease.

Keywords:
childrenechocardiographyvalvular disease

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