title: Balloon atrial septostomy guided by echocardiography in a neonatal intensive care unit.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The bedside two-dimensional echocardiography (2-D ECHO) has been successfully used to guide the balloon atrial septostomy, speeding up the procedure and preventing the risks of transportation to the hemodynamics laboratory.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To assess the results of the bedside balloon atrial septostomy in cyanotic neonates.
  
  
  METHODS
  Between January/1997 and July/2008, 102 atrioseptostomies by balloon catheter guided by echocardiography were carried out and saturation levels, defect diameter, oxygen saturation, clinical-laboratory response and complications related to the procedure were evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of 102 cases of bedside Rashkind septostomy, 98 met the inclusion criteria, with 90 neonates in Group A (Rashkind procedure in the preoperative phase) and 8 in Group B (procedure at the postoperative phase). There was a predominance of the male sex (75%), mean age was 8.3 ± 9.3 days and the mean weight was 3,100 ± 1,100 g; the transposition of the great arteries was the most frequent congenital heart disease (n = 74). When comparing the levels of saturation pre and post-procedure (65.9 ± 19.5% and 86 ± 9.7%) and the diameter of the interatrial septal defect pre and post-procedure (2.3 ± 1.0 mm and 5.5 ± 1.3 mm) there was a statistically significant difference (p < 0.001). When comparing the levels of saturation and the diameter of the interatrial septal defect between the group of survivors vs non-survivor, there was no statistically significant difference (p > 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The balloon atrial septostomy guided by the echocardiography reduces the risks by allowing the effective palliative procedure to be carried out promptly in cyanotic neonates, in addition to presenting lower hospital costs.
authors.affiliation: Hospital Beneficência Portuguesa de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brasil. lilianlopes@cardiol.br
authors.forename: Lilian M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Lopes
authors.forename: Christiane
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kawano
authors.forename: Salvador André Bavaresco
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Cristóvão
authors.forename: Célia Toshie
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Nagamatsu
authors.forename: Luciana da
authors.initials: Ld
authors.lastname: Fonseca
authors.forename: Beatriz Helena Sanchez
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Furlanetto
authors.forename: Gláucio
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Furlanetto
authors.forename: José Pedro da
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.forename: José Armando
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Mangione
mesh_terms: D002404:Catheterization / Q000009:adverse effects; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006325:Heart Atria; D006344:Heart Septal Defects, Atrial / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007363:Intensive Care Units, Neonatal; D008297:Male; D014188:Transposition of Great Vessels / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000628:therapy*; D018084:Ultrasonography, Interventional / Q000379:methods*