Growth After Pediatric Heart Transplant

Abstract

LEARNING OUTCOME: To investigate the effect of nutrition intervention on growth after pediatric heart transplant. The incidence of delayed growth in children with congenital heart disease has been indicated in numerous studies. Studies have shown that nutrition intervention can play an important role in the early prevention of malnutrition. A retrospective chart review was conducted to examine growth during the year following transplantation. The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) growth chart was used to evaluate growth. Seventeen pediatric heart transplant patients under the age of six at the time of transplant were studied. Chi Square and Pearson's Correlation were performed using Statistical Analysis Systems (SAS) to analyze the data. Because of the small sample size, and numerous nutrition intervention encounters, the data indicated only a slight correlation between growth and nutrition intervention. However, each subject received different types of nutrition intervention, and the effectiveness of each type is variable. The mean increase in growth was 22% on the growth curve with a mean of 14 nutrition intervention encounters per subject. The researchers conclude that it is the responsibility of the dietitian to determine the most appropriate medical nutrition therapy for optimal growth of each individual patient. In addition, physicians should recognize the benefits of nutrition intervention for pediatric cardiac patients and enable the dietitians to provide the needed services through consultation and support of their recommendations.