Assessment of pulmonary hypertension in the pediatric catheterization laboratory: Current insights from the magic registry

Objectives: To assess protocols, demographics, and hemodynamics in pediatric patients undergoing catheterization for pulmonary hypertension (PH). Background: Pediatric specific data is limited on PH. Methods: Review of the Mid-Atlantic Group of Interventional Cardiology (MAGIC) collaboration PH registry dataset. Results: Between November 2003 and October 2008, seven institutions submitted data from 177 initial catheterizations in pediatric patients with suspected PH. Pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with congenital heart disease (APAH-CHD) (n = 61, 34%) was more common than idiopathic PAH (IPAH) (n = 36, 20%). IPAH patients were older with higher mean pulmonary arterial pressures (mPAP) (P < 0.01). Oxygen lowered mPAP in patients with IPAH (P < 0.01) and associated PAH not related to congenital heart disease (APAH-non CHD) (P < 0.01). A synergistic effect was seen with inhaled Nitric Oxide (iNO) (P < 0.01). Overall 9/30 (29%) patients with IPAH and 8/48 (16%) patients with APAH-non CHD were reactive to vasodilator testing. Oxygen lowered pulmonary vascular resistance index (PVRI) in patients with APAH-CHD (P < 0.01). There was no additive effect with iNO but a subset of patients required iNO to lower PVRI below 5 WU·m². General anesthesia (GA) lowered systemic arterial pressure (P < 0.01) with no difference between GA and procedural sedation on mPAP or PVRI. Adverse events were rare (n = 7) with no procedural deaths. Conclusions: Pediatric patients with PH demonstrate a higher incidence of APAH-CHD and neonatal specific disorders compared to adults. Pediatric PH patients may demonstrate baseline mPAP < 40 mm Hg but > 50% systemic illustrating the difficulty in applying adult criteria to children with PH. Catheterization in children with PH is relatively safe.