Nutritional Status of Pediatric Patients with Congenital Heart Disease: Pre- and Post-Cardiac Surgery”

Elsayed, Adel; Abdou, Kirollos; Sobeih, Ahmad Ata

doi:10.21608/bmfj.2023.169158.1689

Nutritional Status of Pediatric Patients with Congenital Heart Disease: Pre- and Post-Cardiac Surgery”

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ department of Pediatrics , Faculty of Medicine, Benha University, Egypt.

² Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Banha University

³ department of Pediatric , Faculty of medicine , Benha University

10.21608/bmfj.2023.169158.1689

Abstract

Background: Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) is often associated with malnutrition and failure to thrive. Objectives: To evaluate the nutritional status and growth pattern in CHD children after cardiac surgery. Patients and methods: The following CHD were included: ventricular septal defect (VSD), Atrial septal defect (ASD), Hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) or Transposition of great arteries (dTGA). All patients have been subjected to history taking, examination, laboratory investigations, radiological findings and arterial oxygen saturation. Results: 47.1% were female. Also, 79.4% were acyanotic CHD and 20.6% were cyanotic CHD. There was statistically significant difference in patient with cyanotic in comparison to patient a cyanotic CHD as regards weight, length, BMI for age Z score. Our study has found that 7.4% of cases with acyanotic CHD and 42.8% of cases with cyanotic CHD had severe malnutrition and 1.9% of cases with acyanotic CHD and 35.7% of cases with cyanotic CHD had moderate malnutrition. Statistically, there was significant difference in nutritional status as regards acyanotic CHD and cyanotic CHD. In our study, 79.4% were with no clinical heart failure. About 13.2% of our cases with CHD had mild heart failure, 4.4% had moderate heart failure and 2.9% had severe heart failure. The most common CHD was Patent ductus arteriosus 32.4% and the less common 5.9% was Atrio-ventricular canal 5.9%. Conclusion: Malnutrition in children with CHD is a major problem as the prevalence of malnutrition among those children was high postoperative caloric data improved when compared to the preoperative caloric data.

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