Pediatric Heart Conditions We Treat

Check Your Symptoms
Use the symptom checker tool to check how serious your symptoms are, if a healthcare visit is needed, and what steps you can take to relieve your symptoms at home.

Nicklaus Children's Hospital offers the most innovative, least invasive approaches to treating pediatric heart conditions. Explore the pediatric heart problems we treat below.

Pulmonary Atresia

Pulmonary atresia is a birth defect of the heart where the valve that controls the flow of blood from the right side of the heart to the lungs does not form, preventing blood picking up oxygen.

Anomalous Left Coronary Artery from the Pulmonary Artery

In a normal heart, the left coronary artery starts in the aorta (the blood vessel that transports blood with oxygen from the heart to the rest of the body including the heart).

Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Return

When one or more of these veins are attached to the wrong part of the heart or another blood vessel, it's known as anomalous pulmonary venous return.

Aortic Regurgitation

When someone has aortic regurgitation, the aortic valve leaks and allows blood to flow back into the left ventricle, which can cause a number of problems.

Aortic Stenosis

When someone has aortic stenosis, the aortic valve doesn't open as wide as it should. This prevents blood from flowing out of the heart at its customary rate.

Aortopulmonary Window

When there is a hole that connects the two major cardiac arteries to one another, this abnormality is known as aortopulmonary window.

Atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is the term used to describe the buildup of plaque, or fatty deposits of cholesterol, fat, calcium and other substances in the arteries of the body.

Atrial Flutter

Atrial flutter is a type of arrhythmia, or irregular heartbeats, that impact the atria (upper chambers) of the heart. With atrial flutter, the heart can beat rapidly or irregularly.

Atrial Septal Defect

An Atrial Septal Defect is a heart condition that is present at birth due to abnormal development of the fetal heart during pregnancy.

Atrioventricular Canal Defect

Atrioventricual canal defects are birth defects that occur very early on in the development of a fetus. The exact reason they occur is not known.

Autonomic Dysfunction

The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is a network of nerves that sends signals between the brain and certain organs to stimulate their activity.

Bacterial Endocarditis

When the inner lining of the heart or the valves of the heart get infected by an organism, the condition is known as bacterial endocarditis.

Barth syndrome

Barth syndrome is one of a rare group of metabolic genetic disorders that often present with symptoms at birth or within the first few months of life.

Bradycardia

Bradycardia is the medical term for a heart rate that is slower than normal.

Cardiac Arrhythmia

Any form of abnormality with the rhythm of your heartbeat, whether it’s fast, slow or irregular, is known as a cardiac arrhythmia.

Cardiac Tumor

If an abnormal tissue grows in the heart it is known as a primary cardiac tumor.

Cardiomyopathy

Cardiomyopathy is a group of diseases that affect the heart muscle. The typically flexible heart muscle turns more rigid, thicker or larger than normal.

Cerebral Venous Thrombosis (CSVT)

Cerebral venous thrombosis is an increasingly recognized cause of stroke in a newborn baby, or children, about 40% of childhood CSVT’s.

Channelopathies

A channelopathy is a disease that is caused by a problem with an ion channel in the body. It can cause problems for the nervous system, heart, lungs, muscles and various other body parts.

Chest Pain

In the vast majority of cases, chest pain is not related to heart problems or a heart attack. Rather, it’s “chest wall pain” that comes from the muscles, ribs or joints within the chest area.

Chromosome 22q11.2 Deletion

Chromosome 22q11.2 deletion is a disorder that occurs when a small part of chromosome 22 is missing at birth. It leads to a wide variety of complications in children born with the disorder.

Chylothorax

Chylothorax is a rare disorder that affects the lungs of infants.

Chylous Pericardium

When something interrupts the flow, or damages the ducts, a leak of lymphatic fluid into the space around the heart is called a Chylopericardium.

CLOVES Syndrome

CLOVES syndrome is a very rare congenital disorder that is characterized by the presence of several problems together.

Coarctation of the Aorta (COA)

Coarctation of the aorta is a heart condition that is present at birth involving the narrowing of the aorta.

Congenital Heart Defects/Disease

Any unusual physical feature or health problem that is present at the birth of a baby is known as a birth defect or a congenital anomaly.

Congenitally Corrected Transposition of the Great Arteries (CCTGA)

Congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries is a birth defect that impacts the heart.

Conjoined twins

The rare situation where two identical twin fetuses are connected to one another by their skin and internal organs, is known as conjoined twins or conjoined twinning.

Coronary Artery Fistula

A coronary artery fistula is a rare, abnormal, usually congenital defect where a coronary artery, incorrectly enters a heart chamber or different blood vessel.

Cyanotic Heart Disease

Cyanotic heart disease refers to a group of congenital heart defects in babies that present with a characteristic blue color of the skin

Usually a baby is born with the heart in the left chest. Babies with dextrocardia, have their heart’s on the right side of the chest instead, and frequently have other congenital (before birth) heart abnormalities too.

Double Aortic Arch

Normally, the aorta develops into one large vessel that arches to the left as it leaves the heart. When a double aortic arch is present, two tubes develop which circle and compress the windpipe and/or food pipe.

Double Inlet Left Ventricle

Normally the right atrium is connected to the right ventricle which pumps oxygen-poor blood from the body tissues, out to the lungs to get oxygen. The left atrium collects the oxygenated blood from the lungs and is connected to the left ventricle which pumps the oxygen-rich blood out to the body. In double inlet left ventricle, both atria connect to one ventricle and the right ventricle is small.

Double Outlet Right Ventricle (DORV)

Double outlet right ventricle means that both the aorta and the pulmonary artery, the body’s two main arteries, come out of the right ventricle.

Ebstein's Anomaly of the Tricuspid Valve

When Ebstein’s anomaly of the tricuspid valve occurs, it means that the tricuspid valve between the right atrium and the right ventricle of the heart is deformed

Eisenmenger Syndrome

Eisenmenger syndrome is a heart problem that develops over time, as a result of other congenital defects in the heart.

Endocardial Cushion Defect

An endocardial cushion defect is a congenital abnormality of the heart where the central part of the heart that normally divides it into four chambers is defective.

Generalized Arterial Calcification of Infancy

Generalized arterial calcification of infancy is a rare genetic disorder present at birth that is characterized by calcium buildup in all blood vessels throughout the body.

Heart Block

Heart block is a problem that occurs with the heart’s electrical system. This system controls the speed and the rhythm of the hearts’ beats.

Heart Murmur

When the heartbeat is interrupted by unusual sounds such as blowing, whooshing or rasping, it’s called a heart murmur.

Heart Palpitations

When someone can actually feel the beat of the heart inside their chest, and the sensation feels like the heart is beating too fast, skipping a beat, fluttering or pounding, this is known as heart palpitations.

Hemitruncus

In this very rare heart abnormality, the main pulmonary artery and one branch, typically the left, are found in the correct position, however the right one comes out of the ascending aorta.

Heterotaxy Syndrome (Isomerism)

Heterotaxy syndrome is a rare birth defect that involves the heart and other organs where a child is born with organs on the opposite side of the body from where they are commonly located.

High Blood Pressure

Hypertension (high blood pressure) is defined as a child's blood pressure greater than that of 95% of their normal peers.

Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS)

Hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) is one of the most complex cardiac defects seen in newborns.

Inherited Rhythm Disorders

Inherited rhythm disorders are arrhythmias, or irregular heartbeats, that are inherited from family members.

Interruption of the Aortic Arch (IAA)

When blood flow is cut off at any point along the aorta, it is known as interruption of the aortic arch or an interrupted aortic arch (IAA).

Kawasaki Disease

When inflammation occurs in the coronary arteries and other medium-sized arteries throughout the body, the condition is known as Kawasaki disease.

Long QT Syndrome (LQTS)

Long QT syndrome is an electrical problem of the heart that can lead to potentially dangerous arrhythmias which can present with a fainting spell, seizure or even sudden death.

Low Blood Pressure

There are situations where blood pressure can become dangerously low and cause symptoms.

Lymphatic Malformation

A lymphatic malformation is a mass in the head or neck that results from an abnormal formation of lymphatic vessels.

Midaortic Syndrome

When midaortic syndrome is present, the aorta, the main artery that carries blood from the heart to the body is narrowed where it lies in the abdomen.

Mitral Valve Defects

The mitral valve separates the two left heart chambers; left atrium from the left ventricle.

Myocarditis

The myocardium is the thick layer of muscle tissue in the center of the wall of the heart.

Overriding Aorta

Please see Tetralogy of Fallot for further information.

Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA)

Patent ductus arteriosus is a heart condition that affects some babies soon after birth.

Patent Foramen Ovale

A PFO is a hole in the tissue that separates the heart's two upper chambers.

Pericarditis

The pericardium is a two thin layer sac that surrounds the heart. Normally, there is a small layer of fluid between the inner and outer layers. When the layers become inflamed, or infected, the condition is known as pericarditis.

Peripheral Pulmonary Stenosis

The pulmonary arteries are the blood vessels that carrying blood from the heart to the lungs for oxygenation and removal of carbon dioxide. When one or more of the branches of the pulmonary arteries are narrowed the condition is known as peripheral pulmonary stenosis.

Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS)

Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome is a form of rapid heartbeat that occurs when an individual moves from a sitting or lying position to a standing position.

Premature Ventricular Contractions

The ventricles are the lower chambers of the heart. When these chambers experience extra heartbeats that cause problems for a person’s overall heart rate, this is known as a premature ventricular contraction.

Pulmonary Hypertension

Hypertension means high blood pressure, but in the case of pulmonary hypertension, the high pressure affects the pulmonary arteries that take blood from the heart to the lungs.

Pulmonary Regurgitation

The pulmonary valve controls the flow of blood from the heart out to the lungs. When this valve leaks, it allows blood to flow backward into the heart before it can travel to the lungs. This leak is known as pulmonary regurgitation.

Pulmonary Stenosis

Pulmonary stenosis is usually a congenital heart defect, which means that babies are born with it.

Pulmonary Vein Stenosis

PVS is a rare disease that causes a blockage of the blood vessels that bring the blood from the lungs back into the heart.

Rheumatic Fever and Rheumatic Heart Disease

Rheumatic fever is a disease caused by the body's inflammatory response to a bacterial infection caused by a group A streptococcus bacterial infection of the throat.

Septal Defects

A septal defect is a hole in the tissue that separates two adjacent chambers of the heart.

Shone's Syndrome

Shone’s syndrome, is a rare form of congenital heart disease where there is a combination of four left-sided heart defects.

Single Ventricle Heart Defects (SVD)

The ventricles are two of the hearts' four chambers. When a baby is born with only one of the ventricles functioning properly or missing, this is called "single ventricle defect".

Sinus Node Dysfunction

The sinus node is a group of cells within the heart that establishes its rhythm. When something goes wrong with the sinus node, it can cause an arrhythmia, or heart rhythm problem.

Supraventricular Tachycardia (SVT)

A type of fast heart arrhythmia that is common in children.

Symptoms that might Indicate a Heart Problem

As there are many causes of heart problems in children, and because of this symptoms will vary depending on the cause. Many of these symptoms occur in children without heart disease.

Syncope

Syncope is the medical term for fainting which is a brief, temporary loss of consciousness.

Tachycardia

Tachycardia is the medical term for a rapid heartbeat.

Tetralogy of Fallot

Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) is a heart condition of several defects present at birth that occur due to abnormal development of the heart during pregnancy.

Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Return

Ordinarily, oxygen-rich blood in the body enters the heart from the lungs through a series of four veins that feed into the left atrium ( the heart’s left upper chamber ) of the heart.

Transposition of the Great Arteries

Transposition of the great arteries is a heart condition that is present at birth due to abnormal development of the fetal heart during pregnancy, in which the two major arteries that carry blood from the heart to the lungs and the body are wrongly connected.