Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 15, 2026
Echocardiographic Evaluation of Atrial Communications before Transcatheter Closure
Published on: February 8, 2022
Balloon dilatation for cardiac obstructive lesions in infants and children
1University of Florida College of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, J. Hillis Miller Health Center, Gainesville 32610.
Insights
Balloon valvuloplasty (PBD) effectively treats typical pulmonary stenosis (PS) in children, offering satisfactory relief and safety. However, results are poor for dysplastic valves, and aortic stenosis procedures are more complex.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Cardiology
- Interventional Cardiology
- Congenital Heart Disease
Background:
- Balloon valvuloplasty (PBD) is a common intervention for obstructive cardiac lesions in pediatric patients.
- Pulmonic stenosis (PS) is a frequent indication for PBD in infancy and childhood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the efficacy and safety of PBD for various obstructive cardiac lesions in pediatric patients.
- To compare outcomes of PBD for typical PS versus dysplastic valves and aortic stenosis.
Main Methods:
- Review of PBD procedures for congenital heart defects in infants and children.
- Analysis of procedural success rates and complication profiles for different valve conditions.
Main Results:
- PBD demonstrates uniformly satisfactory results and a low complication rate for typical PS, establishing it as the treatment of choice.
- PBD is effective for non-dysplastic aortic stenosis in pediatric patients, though technically more challenging than pulmonic valvuloplasty.
- Outcomes for dysplastic valves treated with PBD are poor, indicating limited efficacy for this specific pathology.
Conclusions:
- PBD is a safe and effective treatment for typical PS and non-dysplastic aortic stenosis in children.
- PBD is not recommended for dysplastic semilunar valves due to unsatisfactory outcomes.
- Advancements in balloon catheter technology are expected to improve neonatal PBD procedures.
Abstract:
PBD has been used to relieve a wide variety of cardiac obstructive lesions in infancy and childhood. However, it has been most frequently used for semilunar valve stenosis, particularly PS. Results of pulmonic PBD are almost uniformly satisfactory for relief of typical PS, and the low rate of significant complications show that it is a safe procedure in practiced hands. It is now considered the treatment of choice for typical PS. Recently reported results of PBD for critical neonatal PS are also encouraging. New generations of balloon catheters better suited for neonatal balloon valvuloplasty will probably facilitate the procedure. In contrast, results for dysplastic valves are poor, suggesting that this condition is not amenable to PBD. Aortic stenosis also responds well to PBD in infancy and childhood when the valve is not dysplastic. The procedure in general is technically more difficult than pulmonary valvuloplasty, with a higher rate of complications, especially in neonates.
