Prenatal detection of congenital heart disease (CHD) using ultrasound and the implementation of standardized pulse oximetry screening can both play an important role in decreasing infant mortality and morbidity worldwide, according to a review article in the International Journal of Neonatal Screening.

Lead author Anita Krishnan, MD, advanced imaging cardiologist, and a team from Children's National including national and international leaders in implementation of both modalities, highlighted how both approaches can and should be applied wherever possible around the world. They also noted that adaptations and novel technology applications should be harnessed where necessary to address the challenges of resource limited settings.

"Given variable availability of fetal cardiology expertise within and between regions, screening for critical and severe CHD is best done in an approach that partners prenatal and postnatal testing with a specific plan for each country that reflects the patient population, availability and skills of providers, and access to technology," the authors wrote. "Together, technologies in both the prenatal and postnatal period can be paired to achieve close to universal detection of CHD for infants in the perinatal period."

Children's National leads the way

Children's National performs more than 4,000 fetal ultrasounds each year, making it one of the most experienced centers in the United States at finding these conditions and planning for their care. Birth planning protocols based on fetal diagnosis that were created two decades ago by the team at Children's National and led by Mary Donofrio, MD, have become part of the extensive fetal cardiology care guidelines in use around the world.

Additionally, since 2009, Gerard Martin, MD, and team at Children's National including Lisa Hom, RN, Esq, have been at the forefront of a national cohort of clinicians helping to implement screening for newborns in every birthing hospital. Findings from long-term implementation studies conducted by Children's National and Holy Cross Health in Maryland have allowed for further refinement of the pulse oximetry algorithm and establish the scientific evidence for its benefits and effectiveness.

Read the full article: The Dual Role of Neonatal Pulse Oximetry Screening and Fetal Echocardiography in Congenital Heart Disease Detection Around the World

Additional Children's National authors: Carolyn Sommer, MD, Chinenyenwa Mpamaugo, MD, Dr. Donofrio, Dr. Martin and Ms. Hom.