Born with 700 grams

Innovative heart surgery on premature babies in Graz a success

Nachrichten
14.11.2024 16:30

The pediatric cardiology department at Graz University Hospital has achieved a minor sensation: four weeks after her birth, little Aglaia had a so-called "piccolo" umbrella inserted into her heart using a catheter. The operation was made possible by a new imaging method, among other things.

Little Aglaia weighed just 700 grams when she was born in the 26th week of pregnancy. She found it difficult to breathe - a so-called "open ductus" put her life in danger. But the cardiologists at Graz University Hospital knew how to help her. Four weeks after her birth, they dared to perform a new type of operation that would guarantee her a healthy upbringing.

On the operating table at 960 grams
"Although ductus closure itself is a relatively common and technically straightforward intervention, it is real precision work," explains Gernot Grangl, Head of the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory at the Department of Paediatric Cardiology. Just a few weeks ago, doctors would not have performed the procedure on a premature baby weighing less than one kilogram - Aglaia weighed just 960 grams.

In addition, the operation would normally only have been performed via an incision in the chest. In Aglaia's case, however, Grangl inserted a narrow catheter via a groin vein up to the walnut-sized heart, where the small "gap" was closed with a pea-sized "piccolo" umbrella. This surgical method was made possible by a recently introduced new imaging system.

Little Ilvy on her mother's arm. (Bild: LKH-Univ. Klinikum Graz/Kurt Remling)
Little Ilvy on her mother's arm.

In future, patients like little Ilvy, who was born with a heart defect called pulmonary valve stenosis, will also benefit from the new system. Should Ilvy need a heart valve replacement later on, this can also be carried out using a cardiac catheterization procedure, explains Grangl. The planned construction of a new children's center at Graz University Hospital in 2029 is also causing much anticipation. As part of the "LKH 2040" construction program, the way has been paved for a new children's center.

This article has been automatically translated,
read the original article here.

Porträt von Steirerkrone
Steirerkrone
Loading...
00:00 / 00:00
Abspielen
Schließen
Aufklappen
Loading...
Vorige 10 Sekunden
Zum Vorigen Wechseln
Abspielen
Zum Nächsten Wechseln
Nächste 10 Sekunden
00:00
00:00
1.0x Geschwindigkeit
Loading
Kommentare
Eingeloggt als 
Nicht der richtige User? Logout

Willkommen in unserer Community! Eingehende Beiträge werden geprüft und anschließend veröffentlicht. Bitte achten Sie auf Einhaltung unserer Netiquette und AGB. Für ausführliche Diskussionen steht Ihnen ebenso das krone.at-Forum zur Verfügung. Hier können Sie das Community-Team via unserer Melde- und Abhilfestelle kontaktieren.

User-Beiträge geben nicht notwendigerweise die Meinung des Betreibers/der Redaktion bzw. von Krone Multimedia (KMM) wieder. In diesem Sinne distanziert sich die Redaktion/der Betreiber von den Inhalten in diesem Diskussionsforum. KMM behält sich insbesondere vor, gegen geltendes Recht verstoßende, den guten Sitten oder der Netiquette widersprechende bzw. dem Ansehen von KMM zuwiderlaufende Beiträge zu löschen, diesbezüglichen Schadenersatz gegenüber dem betreffenden User geltend zu machen, die Nutzer-Daten zu Zwecken der Rechtsverfolgung zu verwenden und strafrechtlich relevante Beiträge zur Anzeige zu bringen (siehe auch AGB). Hier können Sie das Community-Team via unserer Melde- und Abhilfestelle kontaktieren.

Kostenlose Spiele
Vorteilswelt