When your child's cardiologist suspects a heart condition, she or he interprets a variety of tests and imaging studies to rule out complications, confirm a diagnosis and gather more specific information to determine the optimal treatment.
The foundation to every successful treatment plan begins with establishing a precise diagnosis that leads to patients experiencing shorter interventional procedures, less time spent under anesthesia or on bypass machinery, a speedier recovery and fewer potential complications. An expert diagnosis also helps cardiac surgeons perform more accurate repairs. At the Children's Hospital at Montefiore (CHAM), we offer the most advanced diagnostic equipment available and have specially trained pediatric physicians and technicians conducting and interpreting each exam.
In addition to a physical examination, your child's cardiologist may request one or more noninvasive tests. These may include: chest X-ray, transthoracic echocardiogram, fetal echocardiogram, CAT (computed axial tomography) scan, electron beam CAT scan, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), electrocardiogram (EKG/ECG), Holter monitoring, exercise testing and tilt table evaluation. Some nonsurgical invasive tests, such as blood tests, transesophageal echocardiography, cardiac catheterization and electrophysiology testing, might also be required.
Distinguished Diagnostics at CHAM
CHAM, once again, was ranked among the top pediatric specialty hospitals in the nation in U.S. News Media Group's 2009-10 edition of America's Best Children's Hospitals. This prestigious honor highlights our commitment to upholding the highest possible standards and bringing the best possible medical care to each child and adolescent. Some of the differences you and your child will discover at CHAM include:
- Expert fetal diagnostics: If your unborn child has a heart condition, he or she will receive faster-often lifesaving-cardiac treatment if the diagnosis is determined before birth. Our echo specialists work closely with your obstetrician (OB), providing precise diagnostics that allow your OB and your family to prepare for your baby's birth and heart repair. In many cases at CHAM, our extraordinary heart team can even medically treat your baby's cardiac condition before birth.
- Imaging studies by one of the nation's leading children's echocardiography teams: A child's heart presents special imaging challenges. At CHAM, your child benefits from images created by our exceptional echocardiographers, who have performed tens of thousands of echo studies on young hearts. Our expert cardiac MRI and CAT team has the latest technology to determine the structure and function of the heart using these advanced imaging techniques.
- Superb Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory: Under the leadership of Nicole Sutton, MD, our cardiac catheterization laboratory is one of the finest in the northeast region, and our multidisciplinary staff members are recognized leaders in the field. Fully equipped for both catheter and hybrid procedures, the CHAM lab allows our interventionists to move seamlessly from diagnostics to treatment. Explore our new pediatric hybrid catheter lab, currently under construction, which is one of the first of its kind in the New York tri-state area.
- Electrophysiology testing: Dr. Clark, Director of the Electrophysiology Program, is an expert in arrhythmia management and the placement of transvenous pacemakers and implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) and is the medical director of the Exercise Laboratory at the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore.
- Commitment to advanced technology. Many hospitals claim to have "state-of-the-art" diagnostics, but what does that mean for pediatric cardiology? Advanced cardiac technology includes 3-D echocardiography, cardiac MRI and CAT, and 3-D electrophysiology mapping. Plus, facilities need an exceptional team of physicians who maximize the benefits of this new technology. CHAM is committed to advancing and embracing these diagnostic tools-and to staffing our Pediatric Heart Center with the finest specialists in the cardiology field.