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Echocardiographic image collection and evaluation in infants with CHD: lessons learned from the imaging core lab for the Residual Lesion Score study
- Jami C. Levine, Steven Colan, Felicia Trachtenberg, Edward Marcus, Matthew Ferguson, Anitha Parthiban, Carolyn Taylor, Andreea Dragulescu, Benjamin Goot, Ronald V. Lacro, Carol McFarland, Shanthi Narasimhan, Matthew O’Connor, Marcus Schamberger, Shubhika Srivistava, Michael Taylor, Meena Nathan
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- Journal:
- Cardiology in the Young / Volume 34 / Issue 3 / March 2024
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 22 August 2023, pp. 570-575
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Many factors affect patient outcome after congenital heart surgery, including the complexity of the heart disease, pre-operative status, patient specific factors (prematurity, nutritional status and/or presence of comorbid conditions or genetic syndromes), and post-operative residual lesions. The Residual Lesion Score is a novel tool for assessing whether specific residual cardiac lesions after surgery have a measurable impact on outcome. The goal is to understand which residual lesions can be tolerated and which should be addressed prior to leaving the operating room. The Residual Lesion Score study is a large multicentre prospective study designed to evaluate the association of Residual Lesion Score to outcomes in infants undergoing surgery for CHD. This Pediatric Heart Network and National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute-funded study prospectively enrolled 1,149 infants undergoing 5 different congenital cardiac surgical repairs at 17 surgical centres. Given the contribution of echocardiographic measurements in assigning the Residual Lesion Score, the Residual Lesion Score study made use of a centralised core lab in addition to site review of all data. The data collection plan was designed with the added goal of collecting image quality information in a way that would permit us to improve our understanding of the reproducibility, variability, and feasibility of the echocardiographic measurements being made. There were significant challenges along the way, including the coordination, de-identification, storage, and interpretation of very large quantities of imaging data. This necessitated the development of new infrastructure and technology, as well as use of novel statistical methods. The study was successfully completed, but the size and complexity of the population being studied and the data being extracted required more technologic and human resources than expected which impacted the length and cost of conducting the study. This paper outlines the process of designing and executing this complex protocol, some of the barriers to implementation and lessons to be considered in the design of future studies.
Cardiac point of care ultrasound in resource limited settings to manage children with congenital and acquired heart disease
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- Rugambwa M. Muhame, Andreea Dragulescu, Adi Nadimpalli, Daniel Martinez, Marie-Claude Bottineau, Raghu Venugopal, Kyle Runeckles, Cedric Manlhiot, Lynne E. Nield
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- Journal:
- Cardiology in the Young / Volume 31 / Issue 10 / October 2021
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 08 March 2021, pp. 1651-1657
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Background:
In resource limited settings, children with cardiac disease present late, have poor outcomes and access to paediatric cardiology programmes is limited. Cardiac point of care ultrasound was introduced at several Médecins Sans Frontières sites to facilitate cardiopulmonary assessment. We describe the spectrum of disease, case management and outcomes of cases reviewed over the Telemedicine platform.
Methods:Previously ultrasound naïve, remotely placed clinical teams received ultrasound training on focussed image acquisition. The Médecins Sans Frontières Telemedicine platform was utilised for remote case and imaging review to diagnose congenital and acquired heart disease and guide management supported by a remotely situated paediatric cardiologist.
Results:Two-hundred thirty-three cases were reviewed between 2016 and 2018. Of 191 who underwent focussed cardiac ultrasound, diagnoses included atrial and ventricular septal defects 11%, atrioventricular septal defects 7%, Tetralogy of Fallot 9%, cardiomyopathy/myocarditis 8%, rheumatic heart disease 8%, isolated pericardiac effusion 6%, complex congenital heart disease 4% and multiple other diagnoses in 15%. In 17%, there was no identifiable abnormality while 15% had inadequate imaging to make a diagnosis. Cardiologist involvement led to management changes in 75% of cases with a diagnosis. Mortality in the entire group was disproportionately higher among neonates (38%, 11/29) and infants (20%, 16/81). There was good agreement on independent review of selected cases between two independent paediatric cardiologists.
Conclusion:Cardiac point of care ultrasound performed by remote clinical teams facilitated diagnosis and influenced management in cases reviewed over a Telemedicine platform. This is a feasible method to support clinical care in resource limited settings.
Challenges and lessons learned from the Pediatric Heart Network Normal Echocardiogram Database study
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- Dongngan Truong, Leo Lopez, Peter C. Frommelt, Jessica Stelter, Brenda Ni, Meryl S. Cohen, Ashwin Prakash, Steven D. Colan, Christopher Spurney, Jonathan Soslow, Gail D. Pearson, Joseph Mahgerefteh, Ritu Sachdeva, Ricardo Pignatelli, Felicia Trachtenberg, Mario Stylianou, Karen Altmann, Kathleen A. Rathge, Joseph Camarda, Shahryar Chowdhury, Andreea Dragulescu, Michele Frommelt, Olukayode Garuba, Brian Soriano, Shubhika Srivastava, Poonam Thankavel, Mary E. van der Velde, L. LuAnn Minich, For the Pediatric Heart Network Investigators
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- Journal:
- Cardiology in the Young / Volume 30 / Issue 4 / April 2020
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 17 March 2020, pp. 456-461
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Background:
The Pediatric Heart Network Normal Echocardiogram Database Study had unanticipated challenges. We sought to describe these challenges and lessons learned to improve the design of future studies.
Methods:Challenges were divided into three categories: enrolment, echocardiographic imaging, and protocol violations. Memoranda, Core Lab reports, and adjudication logs were reviewed. A centre-level questionnaire provided information regarding local processes for data collection. Descriptive statistics were used, and chi-square tests determined differences in imaging quality.
Results:For the 19 participating centres, challenges with enrolment included variations in Institutional Review Board definitions of “retrospective” eligibility, overestimation of non-White participants, centre categorisation of Hispanic participants that differed from National Institutes of Health definitions, and exclusion of potential participants due to missing demographic data. Institutional Review Board amendments resolved many of these challenges. There was an unanticipated burden imposed on centres due to high numbers of echocardiograms that were reviewed but failed to meet submission criteria. Additionally, image transfer software malfunctions delayed Core Lab image review and feedback. Between the early and late study periods, the proportion of unacceptable echocardiograms submitted to the Core Lab decreased (14 versus 7%, p < 0.01). Most protocol violations were from eligibility violations and inadvertent protected health information disclosure (overall 2.5%). Adjudication committee reviews led to protocol changes.
Conclusions:Numerous challenges encountered during the Normal Echocardiogram Database Study prolonged study enrolment. The retrospective design and flaws in image transfer software were key impediments to study completion and should be considered when designing future studies collecting echocardiographic images as a primary outcome.