PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Consensus statement on pediatric arrhythmias released by ESC and AEPC

First European statement concerning the diagnosis and management of pediatric arrhythmias

2013-07-18
(Press-News.org) Sophia Antipolis, 18 July 2013: A joint consensus statement on the treatment of paediatric arrhythmias has been released by the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and the Association for European Paediatric and Congenital Cardiology (AEPC).

"Pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapy for arrhythmias in the paediatric population" was published in EP-Europace.1

Consensus statements have been published on arrhythmias in adults but this is the first European statement concerning the diagnosis and management of paediatric arrhythmias. It is also the first joint document between EHRA and the AEPC.

Professor Josep Brugada (Spain), Chairman of the Working Group, said: "The numbers of children with arrhythmias are relatively small and very few clinicians and centres have the necessary expertise. Paediatric arrhythmias differ from those in adults and should be treated and diagnosed in specialised centres. The ESC and AEPC decided it was necessary to outline how paediatric arrhythmias differ from adult arrhythmias and the requirements for centres that treat children."

The paper covers four main areas: mechanisms, pharmacological treatment, radiofrequency ablation, and devices.

The first chapter explains the mechanisms of arrhythmias in children and how they differ from adults. Professor Brugada said: "Patients with congenital heart disease have specific arrhythmias during the very early years of life and after surgery which have different mechanisms to arrhythmias in adults. It's important to understand these differences when treating children."

Chapter two covers pharmacological treatment of paediatric arrhythmias in the acute and chronic phases. The drugs used to treat children and adults are the same, but there are different doses and indications.

Chapter three deals with radiofrequency catheter ablation, which is increasingly used in children as an alternative to antiarrhythmic drug treatment. There are important differences in children with respect to the catheters, the technique, and the indications.

Professor Brugada said: "There are some indications for ablation of arrhythmias in adults that do not apply to children because their small heart puts them at higher risk of complications. But in general, if clinicians and centres have the appropriate expertise in paediatric ablations they can be performed as safely and effectively as adult ablations, even in young children."

The last chapter is about device treatments including pacemakers, implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs), and cardiac resynchronisation therapy (CRT). Adults can keep the same device and cables for their lifetime but in children they must be replaced every 3-4 years as the child grows.

Professor Brugada said: "The document outlines how to replace the device and the cables in the heart which is a complicated procedure but can be done safely if performed in experienced centres."

He concluded: "This extensive document covers all aspects of paediatric arrhythmias and is a working document for physicians who diagnose and treat these patients. We explain how to perform the different procedures, the indications, and how to manage complications. Centres can use it as a check list to ensure they have the equipment and experience needed to effectively treat this specialised patient population."

### END


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Electronic health records help fight vaccine-preventable diseases, Columbia Nursing study finds

2013-07-18
Using an Electronic Health Record (EHR) system to automate the immunization data shared between health providers and public health agencies enables physicians to assist individual patients faster and more effectively, while also providing more immediate, cohesive community data to the agencies tasked with promoting public health. Those are the findings of a new study conducted by researchers from Columbia University School of Nursing and partner institutions. The researchers also found that automated reporting reduced the lag time historically associated with data submitted ...

Study identifies a simple way to reduce healthcare costs

2013-07-18
MAYWOOD, Il. - A study led by a Loyola University Medical Center ENT physician provides a case study of a simple action that can reduce healthcare costs without compromising care. Matthew Kircher, MD, and colleagues examined one of the costs associated with surgery to remove a type of cyst, called a cholesteatoma, from the middle ear. Otologists routinely send specimens to the pathology lab, but the study found this doesn't appear to be necessary. The study found that in 178 cases involving seven otologists, there was virtually perfect agreement between the otologists' ...

Obesity and asthma: Study finds a link in the genes

2013-07-18
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Genes linked to chronic inflammation in asthma may be more active in people who are obese, according to new research that uncovers several biological ties between obesity and asthma. "Our findings point the way to the management of asthma in the obese through simple weight reduction," said first author Paresh Dandona, MD, PhD, SUNY Distinguished Professor and Chief of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism at the University at Buffalo. The research appeared online June 26 in the journal Obesity and involved two related studies: A comparative study between ...

Epoetin alfa reduces anemia in breast cancer patients with no negative impact on survival

2013-07-18
In patients with high-risk breast cancer, addition of the erythropoiesis-stimulating agent (ESA) epoetin alfa to the chemotherapy regimen may help avoid the decrease in hemoglobin levels and resulting anemia often seen in these patients and does not negatively affect relapse-free (RFS) or overall survival (OS). However, it can increase the risk of thrombotic events, according to a study published July 17 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. To investigate the safety and efficacy of epoetin alfa, Volker Moebus, M.D., of the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, ...

Exercise, endurance sports increase arryhthmia and heart failure risk in carriers of ARVD/C mutation

2013-07-18
A Johns Hopkins study finds that healthy people who carry a genetic mutation for arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia/cardiomyopathy (ARVD/C) are at much higher risk of developing the symptoms of the life-threatening heart disease if they participate in endurance sports and frequent exercise. The study also suggests that those carriers who significantly cut back on their exercise regimen may reduce their risk or delay the onset of symptoms. An article on the study results is published online July 17, 2013, in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. ...

Bodychecking rules don't reduce concussions in elite hockey

2013-07-18
Recent changes in hockey rules regulating contact to the head have not reduced the number of concussions suffered by players during National Hockey League (NHL) season, according to research published July 17 in the open access journal PLOS ONE by Michael Cusimano and colleagues from the Injury Prevention Research Office at St. Michael's Hospital, Canada. The authors compared reports hockey players suffering concussions in the National Hockey League (NHL) before and after rules regulating head contact were changed in 2010-11 and 2011-12. Based on official game records ...

Plant-eating dinosaurs replaced teeth often, carried spares

2013-07-18
VIDEO: This is a CT-generated movie of the premaxilla of Diplodocus (YPM 4677), with bone rendered transparent and teeth opaque. Click here for more information. Some of the largest herbivorous dinosaurs replaced their teeth at a rate of approximately one tooth every 1-2 months to compensate for tooth wear from crunching up plants, according to research published July 17 in the open access journal PLOS ONE by Michael D'Emic from Stony Brook University and colleagues from other ...

Keeping the reserve force home

2013-07-18
KANSAS CITY, MO - Hematopoietic stem cells—bone marrow-derived adult stem cells that give rise to the wide variety of specialized blood cells—come in two flavors: the reserve force sits quietly waiting to be called upon while the active arm continually proliferates spawning billions of blood cells every day. In their latest study, researchers at the Stowers Institute for Medical Research reveal a new mechanism that is critical in maintaining the delicate balance between the two. Publishing in the July 17 advance online issue of Nature, the team led by Stowers Investigator ...

Protein responsible for 'bad' blood vessel growth discovered

2013-07-18
The discovery of a protein that encourages blood vessel growth, and especially 'bad' blood vessels – the kind that characterise diseases as diverse as cancer, age-related macular degeneration and rheumatoid arthritis – has been reported in the journal Nature. The team at the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology discovered the new protein, called LRG1, by screening for mouse genes that are over-expressed in abnormal retinal blood vessels in diseased eyes. In these diseased retinas the LRG1 protein is expressed by blood vessel endothelial cells, which line blood vessel walls. ...

Molecular switch controls the destiny of self-eating cells

2013-07-18
The study is the result of a collaboration of scientists at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden, University of Michigan, and University of California San Diego, USA, who were interested in finding out whether autophagy can be affected by events in the cell nucleus. Surprisingly, they discovered that a signal chain in the nucleus serves as a kind of molecular switch that determines whether the cell dies or survives. Put simply autophagy is a process whereby the cell consumes parts of itself, and is a way for it to clean up abnormal lumps of proteins and rid itself of damaged ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Two scientific researchers to receive 2025 Ralph L. Sacco Scholarships for Brain Health

Researchers improve chemical reaction that underpins products from foods to fuels

Texas Tech to develop semiconductor power devices through $6 million grant

Novel genomic screening tool enables precision reverse-engineering of genetic programming in cells

Hot Schrödinger cat states created

How cells repair their power plants

Oxygen is running low in inland waters—and humans are to blame

ACP’s Best Practice Advice addresses use of cannabis, cannabinoids for chronic noncancer pain

Beyond photorespiration: A systematic approach to unlocking enhanced plant productivity

How a small number of mutations can fuel outbreaks of western equine encephalitis virus

Exposure to wildfire smoke linked with worsening mental health conditions

Research uncovers hidden spread of one of the most common hospital-associated infections

Many older adults send their doctors portal messages, but who pays?

Fine particulate matter from 2020 California wildfires and mental health–related emergency department visits

Gender inequity in institutional leadership roles in US academic medical centers

Pancreatic cells ‘remember’ epigenetic precancerous marks without genetic sequence mutations

Rare combination of ovarian tumors found in one patient

AI-driven clinical recommendations may aid physician decision making to improve quality of care

Artificial intelligence has potential to aid physician decisions during virtual urgent care

ACP and Annals of Internal Medicine present breaking scientific news at ACP’s Internal Medicine Meeting 2025

New study reveals polymers with flawed fillers boost heat transfer in plastics

Signs identified that precede sudden arrhythmic death syndrome in young people

Discovery of bacteria's defence against viruses becomes a piece of the puzzle against resistance

Pre-eclampsia is associated with earlier onset and higher incidence of cardiovascular risk factors

Warwick astronomers discover doomed pair of spiralling stars on our cosmic doorstep

Soil conditions significantly increase rainfall in world’s megastorm hotspots

NK cells complexed with bispecific antibody yield high response rates in patients with lymphoma

Planetary health diet and mediterranean diet associated with similar survival and sustainability benefits

Singapore launches national standard to validate antimicrobial disinfectant products

Molecular stool test could improve detection of tuberculosis in adults with HIV

[Press-News.org] Consensus statement on pediatric arrhythmias released by ESC and AEPC
First European statement concerning the diagnosis and management of pediatric arrhythmias