title: Pattern of cerebral ultrasound in neonatal heart surgery.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  No study described reliably the changes in cerebral ultrasound (CUS) findings in neonatal heart surgery. We tried to define the modifications of CUS before and after heart surgery in neonates.
  
  
  METHODS
  We studied 48 neonates with congenital heart defects were studied. Of these, 33 had correction of the malformation with cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB group); 15 underwent coarctation repair/shunting procedures (no-CPB group). Patients had CUS pre-operatively, 48-72 hours after surgery, and at discharge.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Pre-operative studies did not show significant differences between the groups. In CPB group, preoperatively, 6/33 infants showed echogenicity of basal ganglia and 1/33 grade I IVH. In the early postoperative evaluation, 24/33 infants had abnormal scans: increased echogenicity of basal ganglia in 24 and grade I IVH in 14. At discharge, abnormal scans persisted in 20/33 (basal ganglia echogenicity in 20, grade I IVH in 12). In the no-CPB group, preoperatively, 1/15 infant showed echogenicity of basal ganglia. In the early postoperative evaluation, 6/15 had abnormal scans: increased echogenicity of basal ganglia in 6, grade I IVH in 4. At discharge, abnormal scans persisted in 3/15.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  CUS after neonatal heart surgery shows a definite pattern of increased echogenicity of the basal ganglia, more consistent after CPB. These changes may reflect disturbances of deep grey matter, and last 10-15 days at least.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Cardiology and Heart Surgery, IRCCS Policlinico San Donato, San Donato Milanese, Italy. luca.rosti@gmail.com
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rosti
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Giamberti
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chessa
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Butera
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pomè
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Braga
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Carminati
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Frigiola
mesh_terms: D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures; D004453:Echoencephalography; D005260:Female; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D011182:Postoperative Care; D011300:Preoperative Care