Department of Cardiac Surgery: Drawing on deep expertise while making the most of advanced technology and surgical techniques they’ve developed, our cardiac surgeons regularly achieve favorable outcomes treating complex and common congenital heart defects (CHD).
Department of Cardiology: Our cardiologists are also recognized for their favorable outcomes while delivering compassionate and innovative patient- and family-centered care to children and adults with congenital and acquired heart disease.
Clinical and surgical programs
Adult Congenital Cardiac Surgery: Many adults who had CHD treatment as children now require additional treatment for related or new conditions. Our cardiac surgeons understand the nuances of CHDs and how they affect the adult heart and other health conditions.
Advanced Cardiac Therapies (ACT): When traditional care strategies no longer benefit patients whose hearts are failing, ACT manages and treats their condition with innovative therapies to optimize cardiovascular health and quality of life.
Arteriopathy Program: Cardiac surgeons, cardiologists, general surgeons, pulmonologists, and specialists from the Center for Cardiovascular Genetics create comprehensive care plans for children and adults with arteriopathy and its associated conditions.
Cardiac Fitness Program: With a three-month supervised exercise program that promotes possibilities rather than limitations, the program helps children and adults with CHD benefit from individualized care that improves their fitness and confidence.
Cardiac Imaging: Specialists in cardiac imaging use state-of-the-art techniques to get detailed information about heart function and structure to help form treatment plans tailored to each patient’s condition.
Cardiac Intensive Care (CICU): The CICU is one of the largest and most sophisticated intensive care units dedicated to the care of critically ill children who need or have had heart surgery. The CICU team also cares for children with serious non-surgical conditions such as heart failure and myocarditis and adults who have heart disease complications.
Cardiac Neurodevelopmental Program (CNP): CNP complements children’s core medical care by monitoring their development and learning skills. The team also connects families to resources that can help children meet their developmental and personal goals.
Cardio Hematology/Oncology Service: Our hematologists and oncologists support a child’s heart and cardiovascular system during and after cancer therapy. They also evaluate and care for children whose heart conditions are possibly related to cancer treatment and can determine if cancer therapies should be avoided because of possible risks to the heart.
Cardiomyopathy Program: Children who have cardiomyopathy receive specialized treatment that can include medications, mechanical devices, and minimally invasive surgical procedures. The program is also a bridge for children who need a heart transplant.
Cardiovascular Health for Cancer Survivors Program: This unique program diagnoses cardiovascular issues in patients who have survived childhood cancer and focuses on early intervention to optimize outcomes.
Cardiovascular 3D Modeling and Simulation Program: Making the most of advanced 3D modeling and simulation technology used by the aerospace and automotive industries, this program creates detailed preoperative plans that help heart surgeons fully understand a patient’s condition before a procedure.
The Center for Cardiovascular Genetics: This multidisciplinary team provides comprehensive cardiovascular genetic testing, examinations, and monitoring of children and adults who have cardiovascular genetic conditions. The center also offers counseling and long-term clinical care.
Congenital Heart Valve Program: This team offers advanced catheter-based and surgical approaches — including a partial heart transplant — to treat any one of six valve diseases and restore proper circulation in infants, children, and young adults.
Coronary Artery Program: The program takes a systematic approach to detecting and treating the many variations and patterns of coronary anomalies, which are abnormalities of the coronary arteries.
Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Service: Children with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) have a high risk of developing cardiomyopathy. Our cardiologists work with a team of specialists from several medical disciplines to diagnose, manage, and treat heart and other conditions related to DMD.
Enhanced Recovery After Cardiac Surgery (ERAS) Program: With techniques and methods that lessen pain, lower complications, and decrease time spent in the hospital, the ERAS team helps children recover better and faster after heart surgery.
Exercise Physiology Lab: The lab uses exercise tests to predict how a patient’s cardiopulmonary system responds to exercise and other physical activities.
Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) Program: Specializing in ECMO — an advanced technology that functions as a replacement for a critically ill child's heart and lungs — the program is one of the largest in the world.
Fetal Cardiology Program: The program evaluates, diagnoses, and provides specialized treatment of a fetus with CHDs and other heart problems to get a head start on care.
Inpatient Cardiology: The Acute Cardiac Care Unit (ACCU) provides around-the-clock care and monitoring of children and adults who are receiving inpatient treatment.
Heart Failure Program: As one of the largest of its kind, the program offers advanced therapies that help children delay or completely avoid the need for a heart transplant while improving their heart function.
Heart Transplant Program: The program brings together clinical and research expertise to the diagnosis and treatment of children who are potential candidates for transplantation. The team also manages the care of those who have received transplanted hearts.
Heart Tumor Program: Grounded in research and making the most of advanced imaging techniques, the program specializes in diagnosing and treating heart tumors and other masses involving the heart.
Heterotaxy Program: Clinicians from several medical disciplines provide comprehensive lifelong care to infants and children with heterotaxy, a complex syndrome that affects many organ systems.
Kawasaki Disease Program: Children with the acquired heart disease Kawasaki disease need specialized care quickly. The program’s cardiologists, rheumatologists, and pediatric nurse practitioner have experience diagnosing, treating, and providing follow-up care to prevent long-term heart issues.
Neonatal Cardiac Surgery: This team of specialists delivers comprehensive care and surgical treatment to newborns who have any one of 30 types of CHD so they can start life with good heart health.
Outpatient Cardiology: Aside from diagnosing and treating CHDs and other heart conditions, this team of cardiologists follows children and adults throughout their lives so they can benefit from the most appropriate and current treatment.
Pediatric Cardiac Nutrition Program (PECAN): Children with CHDs who face challenges eating, gaining weight, and growing receive nutritional care that is tailored to meet their specific needs and integrated into their cardiac care.
Preventive Cardiology Clinic: The clinic develops personalized healthy eating and exercise plans for children who develop high blood pressure (hypertension) or abnormal cholesterol from genetic causes, lifestyle, and underlying conditions.
Pulmonary Hypertension Program:Pulmonary hypertension can vary greatly in each child and mirror other conditions, making it difficult to diagnose. This multidisciplinary team has extensive experience pinpointing diagnoses and finding the most appropriate course of treatment.
Single Ventricle Program: Specialists in different areas team up to provide long-term care to patients with single ventricle heart defects — from diagnosis to treatments to neurodevelopmental and social support.
Sports Cardiology Clinic: The clinic helps children and young adults with known or suspected heart disease participate in sports safely and to their best ability.
Structural Heart Clinic: Specializing in interventional cardiology and cardiac imaging, this team works with a child’s cardiologist to identify whether catheterization is an appropriate treatment and, if so, treat the condition with minimally invasive catheterization tools.
Surgical Treatment of Congenital Heart Defects: The Department of Cardiac Surgery treats common and complex cases of CHD and consistently delivers compassionate, individualized care that helps children quickly and safely recover.
Vascular Ring and Airway Program: This unique team of cardiac and general surgeons, otolaryngologists, pulmonologists, gastroenterologists, speech-language pathologists, and other specialists provides care and surgical treatment to children who have a vascular ring and airway or esophageal compression.
Ventricular Assist Device (VAD) Program: The program cares for patients who have the most severe forms of heart failure by implanting VADs, electrical-powered heart pumps that work in concert with the heart to improve blood flow.
Imaging services
Cardiac CT scan: A test that uses X-rays to create detailed images of the heart and its blood vessels.
Echocardiogram: Also known as an echo or cardiac ultrasound, this test uses sound waves to offer images of a heart's structures and function.
Fetal Cardiac Intervention: First successfully performed by Boston Children’s, a fetal cardiac intervention is an in utero procedure that treats a variety of CHDs that could cause serious health problems after birth.
Fetal Echocardiography: Also known as a fetal echo, a fetal echocardiogram uses ultrasonic sound waves to create an image of a fetus’ heart structure, detecting CHDs before birth.
Research
Cardiology Basic & Translational Research: Cardiology researchers pursue cutting-edge research to discover new therapies that will improve outcomes and advance the treatment of children and adults with heart disease.
Cardiology Clinical Research: Cardiology clinical researchers work to better understand heart conditions as well as evaluate and improve treatments, techniques, devices, and medications.
Cardiac Surgery Research: A multidisciplinary team of investigators involved in basic and applied research study the mechanisms of heart disease and new treatments for children with CHDs.
