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The objective of this study is to identify predictors of prolonged hospital length of stay (LOS) for single ventricle patients following stage 2 palliation (S2P), excluding patients who underwent a hybrid procedure. We explore the impact of demographic features, stage 1 palliation (S1P), interstage I (IS1) management, S2P, and post-surgical care on hospital LOS following S2P. We conducted a retrospective analysis of the National Pediatric Cardiology Quality Improvement Collaborative (NPC-QIC) database. The NPC-QIC database is an established registry of patients with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) and its variants. It contains detailed information regarding the demographic features, S1P, IS1, S2P, and interstage 2 (IS2) management of children with HLHS and related single ventricle cardiac malformations. Between 2008 and 2012, there were 477 participants with recorded LOS data in the NPC-QIC registry. Excluding the 29 patients who underwent hybrid procedure, there were 448 participants who underwent a Norwood (or Norwood-variant procedure) as S1P. In order to be included in the NPC-QIC database, participants were discharged to home following S1P and prior to S2P. We found that postoperative LOS among the 448 S2P procedure recipients is most strongly influenced by the need for reoperation following S2P, the need for an additional cardiac catheterization procedure following S2P, the use of non-oral methods of nutrition (e.g., nasogastric tube, total parental nutrition, gastrostomy tube), and the development of postoperative complications. Factors such as age at the time of S2P, the presence of a major non-cardiac anomaly, site participant volume, IS1 course, the type and number of vasoactive agents used following S2P, and the need for more than 1 intensive care unit (ICU) hospitalization (following discharge to the ward but prior to discharge to home) were significant predictors by univariate analysis but not by multivariate analysis. We excluded participants undergoing the hybrid procedure as S1P from this analysis given that the S2P following the initial hybrid is typically a more complicated procedure. Hospital LOS following S2P among children undergoing the Norwood or Norwood-variant procedure as S1P is most strongly influenced by events following S2P and not demographic or S1P factors. Factors most predictive of prolonged LOS include the need for reoperation, the need for an additional cardiac catheterization procedure following S2P, the need for non-oral methods of nutrition, and the development of postoperative complications.

The objective of this study is to identify predictors of prolonged intensive care unit (ICU) length of stay (LOS) for single ventricle patients following Stage I palliation. We hypothesize that peri-operative factors contribute to prolonged ICU stay among children with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) and its variants. In 2008, as a part of the Joint Council on Congenital Heart Disease initiative, the National Pediatric Cardiology-Quality Improvement Collaborative established a data registry for patients with HLHS and its variants undergoing staged palliation. Between July 2008 and August 2011, 33 sites across the United States submitted discharge data essential to this analysis. Data describing the patients, their procedures, and their hospital experience were entered. LOS estimates were generated. Prolonged LOS in the ICU was defined as stay greater than or equal to 26 days (i.e., 75th percentile). Statistical analyses were carried out to identify pre-operative, operative, and post-operative predictors of prolonged LOS in the ICU. The number of patients with complete discharge data was 303, and these subjects were included in the analysis. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed. Multivariate analysis revealed that lower number of enrolled participants (e.g., 1-10) per site, the presence of pre-operative acidosis, increased circulatory arrest time, the occurrence of a central line infection, and the development of respiratory insufficiency requiring re-intubation were associated with prolonged LOS in the ICU. Prolonged LOS in the ICU following Stage I palliation in patients with HLHS and HLHS variant anatomy is associated with site enrollment, circulatory arrest time, pre-operative acidosis, and some post-operative complications, including central line infection and re-intubation. Further study of these associations may reveal strategies for reducing LOS in the ICU following the Norwood and Norwood-variant surgeries.