Operating on premature newborns with both congenital heart disease and very low (less than 1,500 grams, or 3 pounds, 4 ounces) or extremely low birth weight (less than 1,000 grams, or 2 pounds, 3 ounces) can be a difficult challenge because of their small size and immaturity. Conventional wisdom holds that it is better to wait for the child to develop further before undertaking heart repair. However, waiting can carry serious risks at times, because the heart defect leaves the child highly vulnerable to potentially fatal complications such as infection or lung disease.
Since fixing the heart defect as soon as possible can give your infant the best chance of living normally, the Betty Irene Moore Children’s Heart Center has developed surgical techniques for congenital heart defects even in extraordinarily small newborns, including successful repairs in the smallest, youngest infants known. As a result of this experience, the Moore Children’s Heart Center is among the world leaders in this demanding specialty.
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