CHICAGO, Nov. 18, 2024 – Researchers from Nemours Children’s Health will present findings from a range of studies at the American Heart Association 2024 conference Nov. 16-18 in Chicago. Key presentations will address cardiovascular complications of COVID-19 in youth, risk of cardiovascular disease in children with neurodevelopmental disabilities, and mental health in patients with congenital heart disease that lasts into adulthood.
“Researchers at Nemours Children’s strive every day to pursue scientific questions that will inform how we can create the healthiest generations of children,” said Matthew M. Davis, MD, MAPP, Executive Vice President, Enterprise Physician-in-Chief and Chief Scientific Officer, Nemours Children’s Health. “Many of the Nemours clinicians’ presentations at AHA demonstrate our commitment to whole child health, which considers developmental, behavioral, mental health and social needs of children along with their physical health.”
Key Nemours presentations at AHA 2024 include the following:
Cardiovascular Health Among Children with Neurodevelopmental Disability: Analysis of National Survey of Children’s Health: Carissa M. Baker-Smith, MD, MPH, Director of the Nemours Preventive Cardiology program, examined data on the cardiovascular health of children with neurodevelopmental disabilities such as autism, attention deficit disorder, or learning and communication disorders. She found that children with neurodevelopmental disabilities were more likely than those without disabilities to have a heart condition and poor overall cardiovascular health.
Uncovering Risk Factors for Myocarditis and Cardiac Arrhythmia in Youth Post SARS-CoV-2 Infection: The COVID-19 virus has been associated with cardiac conditions such as myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) and cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat). Ann Goggins, MD, Pediatric Cardiology Fellow with the Nemours Cardiac Center, examined data from nearly 1.5 million patients and identified the primary risk factors for both conditions. Severity of COVID was the strongest risk factor, followed by lower socioeconomic status.
Healing Hearts, Mending Minds: Battling Anxiety and Depression in Adults with Congenital Heart Disease: People living with congenital heart disease often experience psychological distress that begins in childhood and extends into adulthood. Adam Alberts, PA, Advanced Practice Provider, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware assessed nearly 100 patients in a cardiac clinic and found that 76% had underdiagnosed or undertreated anxiety and depression.
Other Nemours research presentations at AHA will include:
- Breaking Through Barriers with Implementation Science, Abbas Zaidi, MD
- Resource Allocation for Pediatric Populations That Are Highly Affected and/or Socially Disadvantaged, Carissa M. Baker-Smith, MD, MPH
- Leadership 3.0: Creating Space for Female Leadership in Academia, Shubhika Srivastava, MD
- No Room for Chronotropic Incompetence in Living Fontan Patients: Enhanced Heart Rate Increase in Response to Exercise, Takeshi Tsuda, MD
- Impaired Skeletal Muscle Condition and Stroke Volume Reserve Characterize Poor Exercise Performance in Childhood Cancer Survivors, Takeshi Tsuda, MD
- Point of Care Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring for Diagnosing Hypertension is Accepted by Youth, Parents, and Primary Providers, Carissa M. Baker-Smith, MD, MPH
- Complex Pathogenesis and Clinical Presentations of Pediatric Infectious Endocarditis in the Modern Era, Paul Rosenberger
- Components of the Environmental Justice Index are Associated with Hypertension in Adolescents: Analysis of PEDSnet Data, Carissa M. Baker-Smith, MD, MPH
Srivastava, Chief of Cardiology and Co-Director of the Nemours Cardiac Center at Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware will also be part of a panel discussion titled “How Do We Amplify Pediatric Cardiology as a Field in Medicine and Retain Diverse Talent in the Field?”
About Nemours Children's Health
Nemours Children’s Health is one of the nation’s largest multistate pediatric health systems, which includes two freestanding children's hospitals and a network of more than 70 primary and specialty care practices. Nemours Children's seeks to transform the health of children by adopting a holistic health model that utilizes innovative, safe, and high-quality care, while also addressing children’s needs well beyond medicine. In producing the highly acclaimed, award-winning pediatric medicine podcast Well Beyond Medicine, Nemours underscores that commitment by featuring the people, programs and partnerships addressing whole child health. Nemours Children's also powers the world’s most-visited website for information on the health of children and teens, Nemours KidsHealth.org.
The Nemours Foundation, established through the legacy and philanthropy of Alfred I. duPont, provides pediatric clinical care, research, education, advocacy, and prevention programs to the children, families and communities it serves. For more information, visit Nemours.org.
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