Echocardiographically guided catheter closure of arterial ducts in small preterm infants on the neonatal intensive care unit

Objective: To describe closure of haemodynamically significant arterial ducts in preterm infants using an echocardiographically guided cardiac catheter technique in selected infants in the neonatal nursery and in preference to cardiac surgery. Background: Persistently patent arterial ducts are common in preterm infants and are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Cardiac catheter techniques continue to improve and occlusion of arterial ducts in preterm infants is becoming technically feasible. Closure of arterial ducts by cardiac catheter techniques would enable selected infants to avoid surgery and a lateral thoracotomy, as well as potentially obviating the need for transfer of sick preterm infants between units for duct closure. Methods and Results: This brief report describes placement of coils or Amplatzer duct devices to occlude arterial ducts in small premature infants exclusively under echocardiographic guidance in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Conclusions: Closing arterial ducts in the neonatal nursery by an echocardiographically guided cardiac catheter technique with minimal morbidity is becoming achievable and is a significant advance in neonatal care. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.