Heart Rhythm Program - Pediatric
If your child’s heart beats too fast, too slow or irregularly, he or she may have an arrhythmia, which is an abnormal heart rhythm. The Kentucky Children’s Hospital Pediatric Heart Rhythm Program offers expert diagnosis and treatment for children with abnormal heart rhythms. Part of our Joint Pediatric Heart Care Program with Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, the Pediatric Heart Rhythm Program works with specialists from a variety of pediatric disciplines. These experts use advanced medicines, catheter-based procedures and implantable cardiac devices to provide the highest level of patient-centered care.
Conditions we treat
Not every irregular heart rhythm is cause for concern. Many children, for example, experience premature atrial contractions or premature ventricular contractions. These are skipped heartbeats that occur in the heart’s upper chambers (atria) or lower chambers (ventricles), and they’re typically harmless. However, if you suspect your child has an abnormal heart rhythm, it’s best to see a specialist who can make a definitive diagnosis.
Our Pediatric Heart Rhythm Program specialists diagnose and treat many different types of arrythmia that affect children and young adults, including:
- Heart block. This arrhythmia occurs when the heart beats too slowly because electrical signals can’t travel from the atria to the ventricles. In complete heart block, electrical signals are interrupted at the atrioventricular node, a group of cells that helps conduct electricity in the heart.
- Supraventricular tachycardia. This is a common type of fast heartbeat caused by improper electrical signals in the atria.
- Ventricular tachycardia (VT). Uncommon in children, VT is a rapid heart rhythm that originates in the ventricles. A type of VT called long QT syndrome causes the ventricles to contract more slowly than normal, which leads to a fast heartbeat.
Our team also treats a variety of inherited conditions and arrhythmias, as well as conditions that may require an implantable cardiac rhythm device.
Pediatric Heart Rhythm Program Services
Our team provides the most advanced pediatric arrythmia treatment options in the Bluegrass region, including:
- 3D electroanatomical mapping of the heart
- Cardiac resynchronization therapy (also known as biventricular pacing)
- Cryoablation
- Evaluation for risk of highly concerning arrhythmias and genetic arrythmia syndromes, such as long QT syndrome, Brugada syndrome and more
- Genetic testing and counseling for patients and families with possible inherited arrhythmia syndromes
- Implantable loop recorder insertion
- Intracardiac echocardiography
- Low- to zero-dose biplane fluoroscopy for catheter ablations
- Management of arrhythmia disorders and other rhythm problems for patients with congenital heart disease
- Outpatient services, including ambulatory heart rhythm monitoring
- Radiofrequency ablation
- Subcutaneous implantable cardioverter defibrillator implantation
- Transvenous and surgically implanted pacemaker and defibrillator implantation
Patients benefit when our experts collaborate with other specialists. That’s why we partner with specialists at the Gill Heart & Vascular Institute to offer lead (wire) extraction or revision for patients with implantable heart rhythm devices. We also team up with the Adult Congenital Heart Program in arrhythmia evaluation and management in adults with congenital heart disease.
Why Choose UK HealthCare for Pediatric Heart Rhythm Services?
If your child has an arrhythmia, it’s important to trust his or her care to physicians who understand the unique needs of children with these disorders. We partner with Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center to ensure our patients receive advanced, comprehensive care from some of the country’s top experts. That’s one reason U.S. News & World Report ranked Kentucky Children’s Hospital as a Best Children’s Hospital for Cardiology & Heart Surgery.
