This study investigated the characteristics of congenital rubella syndrome (CRS)-associated cardiac complications, particularly patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). We reviewed the medical records of patients with CRS who were admitted to the Children's Hospital 1 in Vietnam between December 2010 and December 2012, and patients with CRS who underwent PDA transcatheter occlusion therapy at the cardiology department between December 2009 and December 2015. We compared the characteristics of PDA treated with transcatheter closure between children with CRS (CRS-PDA) and those without CRS (non-CRS-PDA) who underwent PDA transcatheter closure between July 2014 and December 2015. One-hundred-and-eight children with CRS were enrolled. Cardiac defects (99%), cataracts (72%), and hearing impairment (7%) were detected. Fifty CRS-PDA and 290 non-CRS-PDA patients were examined. CRS-PDA patients had smaller median birthweight (p < 0.001), more frequent pulmonary (p < 0.001) and aortic stenosis (p < 0.001), higher main pulmonary artery pressure, and higher aortic pressure in systole/diastole (p < 0.001 for each) than did non-CRS-PDA patients. The proportion of tubular-type PDA was higher in CRS-PDA patients (16%) than in non-CRS-PDA patients (3%) (p = 0.020). Tubular-type PDA was frequently seen in patients with CRS and accompanied by pulmonary/systemic hypertension and pulmonary/aortic stenosis; in these patients, more cautious device selection is needed for transcatheter PDA closure.
Outbreaks of rubella and congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) continue to occur in various countries where a rubella-containing vaccine is not included in the national immunization program, particularly in Africa and Asia[
An experienced cardiologist who treated many cases of PDA has empirically recognized that PDA associated with CRS (CRS-PDA) is more difficult to treat with transcatheter occlusion therapy, and the proportion of patients with tubular-type of PDA is higher than overall cases of PDA (Do TN, personal communication)[
In this study, we 1) described the clinical and cardiac manifestations of children with CRS and 2) investigated the PDA types and sizes, the device types for transcatheter PDA occlusion, and cardiac complications other than PDA among PDA patients with CRS (CRS-PDA) comparing with those without CRS (non-CRS-PDA).
A total of 2978 catheterization procedures were conducted at Children's Hospital 1 (CH1) in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, between 2011 and 2015. Among them, 1599 (53.7%) were transcatheter PDA closure procedures. The proportion of PDA closure procedures among all catheterization procedures was higher in 2011 and 2012 than in other years (Supplemental Table 1). The monthly number of transcatheter PDA occlusion procedures, sorted by birth dates, peaked in October and November 2011 (Supplemental figure). Forty-four patients underwent PDA ligation surgery between 2011 and 2015; 20 of these were born in 2011.
We enrolled 67 patients with CRS (46 confirmed/21 probable) admitted between December 2010 and December 2012 who were identified by a previous study[
Graph: Figure 1 Enrollment flow chart for the study populations. Part 1; a study for characteristics of cases of congenital rubella syndrome, Part 2; a study for patent ductus arteriosus with or without congenital rubella syndrome. Symptoms in Group A; congenital heart disease, cataract(s), glaucoma, and suspected hearing impairment Symptoms in Group B; purpura, jaundice within 24 hours after birth, hepatosplenomegaly, meningoencephalitis, developmental delay, and microcephaly[
Characteristics of children with congenital rubella syndrome.
Characteristics Total cases of CRS CRS from previous study CRS and PDA from the Department list Number (%) or median (IQR)a Number (%) or median (IQR)a Number (%) or median (IQR)a n = 108 n = 67 n = 41 Sex (male) 47 (43.5) 30 (44.8) 17 (41.5) Date of birth (range) 10 Jan 2009–05 Nov 2012 18 Jan 2011–18 Oct 2012 10 Jan 2009–05 Nov 2012 Age on admission (months) 3.3 (0.5–8.3) 1.0 (0.1–3.4) 8.3 (6.2–19.3) Body weight on admission (kilogram) 3.5 (2.3–5.2) 2.7 (2.1–3.4) 5.4 (4.6–7.1) Birthweight (gram) n = 101 n = 65 n = 36 2200 (1850–2500) 2100 (1700–2400) 2200 (2000–2600) Low birthweight (<2500 gram) 73 (72.3) 51 (78.5) 22 (61.1) n = 108 n = 67 n = 41 Gestational weeks at birth 37 or more 65 (60.2) 37 (55.2) 28 (68.3) less than 37 36 (33.3) 27 (40.3) 9 (22.0) Unknown 7 (6.5) 3 (4.5) 4 (9.8) Cardiac disease Yes 107 (99.1) 66 (98.5) 41 (100.0) No 0 (0.0) 0 (0.0) 0 (0.0) Unknown 1 (0.9) 1 (1.5) 0 (0.0) Symptoms from cardiac diseasea Yes 63 (58.3) 28 (41.8) 35 (85.4) No 24 (22.2) 20 (29.9) 4 (9.8) Unknown 21 (19.4) 19 (28.4) 2 (4.9) Cataract Yes 74 (68.5) 39 (58.2) 35 (85.4) No 18 (16.7) 18 (26.9) 0 (0.0) Unknown 16 (14.8) 10 (14.9) 6 (14.6) Hearing impairment Yes 7 (6.5) 3 (4.5) 4 (9.8) No 17 (15.7) 17 (25.4) 0 (0.0) Unknown 84 (77.8) 47 (70.2) 37 (90.2) Developmental delay Yes 34 (31.5) 13 (19.4) 21 (51.2) No 27 (25.0) 27 (40.3) 0 (0.0) Unknown 47 (43.5) 27 (40.3) 20 (48.8) Purpura Yes 18 (16.7) 18 (26.9) 0 (0.0) No 48 (44.4) 48 (71.6) 0 (0.0) Unknown 42 (38.9) 1 (1.5) 41 (100.0) Hepatosplenomegaly Yes 24 (22.2) 24 (35.8) 0 (0.0) No 42 (38.9) 42 (62.7) 0 (0.0) Unknown 42 (38.9) 1 (1.5) 41 (100.0) Jaundice Yes 20 (18.5) 20 (29.9) 0 (0.0) No 42 (38.9) 42 (62.7) 0 (0.0) Unknown 46 (42.6) 5 (7.5) 41 (100.0) Suspected meningoencephalitis Yes 14 (13.0) 14 (20.9) 0 (0.0) No 50 (46.3) 50 (74.6) 0 (0.0) Unknown 44 (40.7) 3 (4.5) 41 (100.0) Neonatal thrombocytopenia n = 41 n = 41 n = 0 <150 × 109/liter 26 (63.4) 26 (63.4) NE <50 × 109/liter 11 (26.8) 11 (26.8) NE Rubella specific immunoglobulin M positive 47 (68.1) (n = 69) 46 (71.9) (n = 64) 1 (20.0) (n = 5) Rubella specific immunoglobulin G positive 14 (100.0) (n = 14) 9 (100.0) (n = 9) 5 (100.0) (n = 5) n = 106 n = 66 n = 40 Patent ductus arteriosus 92 (86.8) 52 (78.8) 40 (100.0) Atrial septal defect (patent foramen ovale) 53 (50.0) 48 (72.7) 5 (12.5) Ventricular septal defect 9 (8.5) 8 (12.1) 1 (2.5) Atrioventricular septal defect 1 (1.0) 1 (1.5) 0 (0.0) Pulmonary hypertension by echo 46 (43.4) 33 (50.0) 13 (32.5.0) Coarctation of aorta 4 (3.8) 4 (6.1) 0 (0.0) Aortic stenosis 15 (14.2) 4 (6.1) 11 (27.5) Aortic regurgitation 7 (6.6) 2 (3.0) 5 (12.5) Pulmonary stenosis 24 (22.6) 10 (15.2) 14 (35.0) Pulmonary regurgitation 16 (15.1) 9 (13.6) 7 (17.5) Mitral regurgitation 27 (25.5) 19 (28.8) 8 (20.0) Tricuspid regurgitation 69 (65.1) 51 (77.3) 18 (45.0) Alive 90 (83.3) 50 (74.6) 40 (97.6) Died/went home to die 18 (16.7) 17 (25.4) 1 (2.4)
CRS; congenital rubella syndrome, IQR; interquartile range, NE; not examined.
Three-hundred-and-forty patients with transcatheter-occluded PDA, including 50 with CRS (CRS-PDA) and 290 without (non-CRS-PDA), were enrolled (Fig. 1). The former were born between January 2009 and November 2012, with a peak in October 2011. The latter were born mostly between March 2013 and September 2015, with a peak in January 2015, but some were born intermittently from February 2003 to December 2012, overlapping the period when babies with CRS were born (Fig. 2). Children with CRS-PDA were younger (p = 0.06), lighter (p < 0.001), and shorter (p = 0.0026) at the time of transcatheter occlusion therapy and lighter at birth (p < 0.001) than were those with non-CRS-PDA, even though the proportions of preterm births were similar between the groups. Children with CRS-PDA had cardiac defect symptoms, including fast breathing, failure to thrive, and/or poor suckling, more frequently than did children with non-CRS-PDA (82% vs. 25%, p < 0.001) (Table 2). Non-CRS-PDA group included seven children with Down syndrome.
Graph: Figure 2 Birth months of the children enrolled in this study who received the transcatheter patent ductus arteriosus occlusion therapy with or without congenital rubella syndrome. CRS-PDA; children with congenital rubella syndrome and patent ductus arteriosus treated by transcatheter closure, non-CRS-PDA; children without congenital rubella syndrome and with patent ductus arteriosus treated by transcatheter closure.
Characteristics of children who underwent transcatheter PDA occlusion therapy and comparison between PDA with and without CRS.
Characteristics PDA cases with CRS PDA cases without CRS p-value Number (%) or median (IQR) Number (%) or median (IQR) n = 50 n = 290 Sex (boy) 21 (42.0) 94 (32.4) 0.186b Date of birth (range) 10 Jan 2009 - 05 Nov 2012 21 Nov 2001 - 23 Sep 2015 Age at catheterization (month) 8.4 (6.2–17.5) 11.3 (6.1–34.2) 0.0569c Body weight at catheterization (kilogram) 5.2 (4.7–7.0) 8.0 (6.0–12.0) <0.001c Body height at catheterization (centimeter) 65 (62–73) (n = 43) 72 (64–90) (n = 282) 0.0026c Body surface area at catheterization (square meter) 0.31 (0.29–0.38) (n = 43) 0.40 (0.33–0.55) (n = 282) <0.001c Birthweight and low birthweight n = 44 n = 269 Birthweight (gram) 2200 (2000–2600) 2900 (2600–3200) <0.001c Low birthweight (<2500 gram) 28 (63.6) 49 (18.2) <0.001b Gestational weeks at birth n = 50 n = 290 37 or more 35 (70.0) 229 (79.0) 0.241b less than 37 10 (20.0) 47 (16.2) Unknown 5 (10.0) 14 (4.8) Symptoms from cardiac diseasef Yes 41 (82.0) 71 (24.5) <0.001d No 6 (12.0) 216 (74.5) Unknown 3 (6.0) 3 (1.0) Cataract Yes 41 (82.0) 0 (0.0) <0.001d No 3 (6.0) 287 (99.0) Unknown 6 (12.0) 3 (1.0) Hearing impairment Yes 7 (14.0) 0 (0.0) <0.001d No 4 (8.0) 282 (97.2) Unknown 39 (78.0) 8 (2.8) Developmental delay Yes 27 (54.0) 6 (2.1) <0.001d No 3 (6.0) 276 (95.2) Unknown 20 (40.0) 8 (2.8) n = 50 n = 287 Atrial septal defect (patent foramen ovale) 7 (14.0) 28 (9.8) 0.449d Ventricular septal defect 1 (2.0) 7 (2.4) >0.999d Pulmonary hypertension by echo 17 (34.0) 71 (24.7) 0.164b Coarctation of aorta 0 (0.0) 2 (0.8) >0.999d Aortic stenosis 11 (22.0) 5 (1.7) <0.001d Aortic regurgitation 5 (10.0) 12 (4.2) 0.150d Pulmonary stenosis 17 (34.0) 2 (0.7) <0.001d Pulmonary regurgitation 8 (16.0) 21 (7.3) 0.055d Mitral regurgitation 9 (18.0) 118 (41.1) 0.002d Tricuspid regurgitation 24 (48.0) 147 (51.2) 0.674b n = 47 n = 276 Systolic pressure of aorta (mmHg) 90 (75–116) 74 (64–83) <0.001c Mean pressure of aorta (mmHg) 69 (56–79) 53 (46–61) <0.001c Diastolic pressure of aorta (mmHg) 50.5 (38–62) (n = 46) 36 (30–42.5) <0.001c n = 39 n = 235 Systolic pressure of main PA (mmHg) 49 (30–67) 33 (26–43) <0.001c Mean pressure of main PA (mmHg) 36.5 (25–47) (n = 38) 25 (19–32) <0.001c Diastolic pressure of main PA (mmHg) 27 (17–37) 17 (13–24) (n = 234) <0.001c PH (mean pressure of main PA ≧25 mmHg) 29 (76.3) (n = 38) 120 (51.1) 0.005d PDA type n = 44 n = 285 A (conical) 33 (75.0) 244 (85.6) 0.002e B (window) 0 (0.0) 2 (0.7) C (tubular) 7 (15.9) 9 (3.2) D (complex) 0 (0.0) 1 (0.4) E (elongated) 4 (9.1) 29 (10.2) PDA size n = 44 n = 282 Aorta side diameter (mm) 8.1 (6.8–9.8) 9.0 (7.7–10.8) 0.0836c PA side diameter (mm) 2.7 (1.5–4.1) 1.9 (1.4–2.7) 0.0074c Length (mm) 8.0 (6.8–9.6) 6.8 (5.6–8.7) 0.0019c Ratio of PA side diameter to aorta side diameter 0.3 (0.2–0.4) 0.2 (0.2–0.3) 0.0015c Aorta diameter n = 43 n = 280 Diameter proximal to PDA (mm) 6.8 (5.1–7.9) 7.7 (6.2–9.5) 0.0026c Diameter distal to PDA (mm) 7.6 (6.8–8.7) 8.6 (7.3–9.9) 0.0031c Estimated aorta diametera 7.4 (7.0–8.4) (n = 43) 9.6 (7.7–11.0) (n = 282) <0.001c Aorta diameter proximal to PDA/estimated aorta diametera (%) 93.2 (69.1–105.1) (n = 39) 83.6 (75.1–94.3) (n = 274) 0.2686c Alive 50 (100.0) 287 (99.0) >0.999d Died/went home to die 0 (0.0) 3 (1.0)
PDA; patent ductus arteriosus, CRS; congenital rubella syndrome, SD; standard deviation, IQR; interquartile range, PA; pulmonary artery, ADO-I; PDA occluders with retention skirt, ADO-II; Amplatzer™ Duct Occluder II.
Using echocardiography, we found that mitral regurgitation occurred among children with CRS-PDA (18%) less frequently than in those with non-CRS-PDA (41%), but children with CRS-PDA had pulmonary (34%) and aortic stenosis (22%) more frequently than did children with non-CRS-PDA (0.7% and 1.7%, respectively) (Table 2). Among the 17 cases of pulmonary stenosis in those with CRS-PDA, eight were valvular stenosis alone, five were valvular and supravalvular stenosis, three were supravalvular stenosis alone, and one was valvular and left peripheral stenosis. Per the pressure gradient measurement of pulmonary stenosis, two cases were mild (<36 mmHg), 12 were moderate (36–64 mmHg), and three were severe (>64 mmHg)[
PH was detected during cardiac catheterization (mean pulmonary artery pressure [mPAP] ≥ 25 mmHg) more frequently in CRS-PDA (76%) than in non-CRS-PDA (51%) (p = 0.005). The aortic and main PA pressures in systole and diastole were higher in those with CRS than in those without, although the former patients were younger than the latter (Table 2).
The proportion of tubular-type PDA was higher among patients with CRS-PDA (16%) than in those with non-CRS-PDA (3%) (p = 0.020) (Table 2). The diameter on the pulmonary artery (PA) side and PDA length were significantly larger and longer in the CRS-PDA than in non-CRS-PDA (p = 0.0074 and p = 0.0019, respectively). The ratio of the PA side diameter to the aorta side diameter was larger in the CRS-PDA than in non-CRS-PDA (p = 0.0015, Table 2). In terms of PDA closure devices, a coil occluder was used more frequently in those without CRS (p = 0.006), and Amplatzer™ Duct Occluder II (ADO-II) was used more frequently in those with CRS (p = 0.013) (Fig. 3). Figure 4 shows angiograms of tubular-type PDA with CRS occluded by a double-disc device and conical-type PDA without CRS occluded by an Amplatzer™ Duct Occluder (ADO-I) type device.
Graph: Figure 3 Proportion of frequency of each device use for patent ductus arteriosus occlusion in CRS-PDA and non-CRS-PDA. (a) Fischer's exact test CRS-PDA; children with congenital rubella syndrome and patent ductus arteriosus treated by transcatheter closure, non-CRS-PDA; children without congenital rubella syndrome and with patent ductus arteriosus treated by transcatheter closure, ADO-I type; PDA occluders with retention skirt, ADO-II; Amplatzer™ Duct Occluder II, Others; other occluders including muscular ventricular septal defect occluder, atrial septal defect occluder, coil for ventricular septal defect, and use ADO-II and coil in combination.
Graph: Figure 4 Type C PDA with CRS and type A PDA without CRS. (a) Type C PDA of a 24-month-old girl with CRS (a-1) and the closure with a muscular VSD occluder (a-2). (a) Type A PDA of 29-month-old girl (b-1) and the closure with Amplatzer™ Duct Occluder (b-1). PDA; patent ductus arteriosus, CRS; congenital rubella syndrome, VSD; ventricular septal defect.
The aorta diameters, both proximal and distal to the PDA, were much smaller in the CRS-PDA than in non-CRS-PDA (p = 0.0024 and p = 0.0061, respectively); however, the ratios of the aorta diameter proximal to the PDA to that just distal to the left subclavian artery that were estimated with the body surface areas were similar between the groups (p = 0.2686).
This is the first study to investigate the morphological and hemodynamic characteristics of PDA in children with CRS and to compare them with those in children with PDA without CRS. This study demonstrated that tubular-type PDA is more frequently observed in children with CRS.
We found that the number of transcatheter PDA occlusions in a hospital by birth date peaked in October and November 2011, similar to the number of infants with CRS born in Vietnam[
While the proportions of children with CRS in this study who had low birthweights and those who had cataracts were similar to those seen in other studies[
Cardiac defects were disproportionally frequent among children in this study because many of them were identified in the Department of Cardiology. PDA was the most prevalent cardiac defect in this (the middle column in Table 1) and in previous studies[
Children with CRS were smaller in body size at the time of catheterization and at birth than the non-CRS group, even though the proportion of preterm births was similar. The higher proportion of girls (67.6%) with non-CRS-PDA is consistent with that in a previous study reporting that the ratio of female to male patients was approximately 2:1[
Pulmonary and aortic stenosis were detected with echocardiography much more frequently for CRS-PDA than for non-CRS-PDA. Previous studies also demonstrated pulmonary stenosis to be a common finding of CRS[
Mitral regurgitation was less prevalent in CRS-PDA than in non-CRS-PDA, possibly because combined progressive PH reduced left heart volume load due to high pulmonary resistance[
Direct blood pressure measurement during catheterization allowed us to detect not only higher PA pressure but also higher aortic pressure in patients with CRS-PDA, even though they had a younger median age than those without CRS. Esterly and Oppenheimer reported vascular lesions in 13 autopsied infants with CRS and found ostial stenosis of the renal artery with intimal fibromuscular proliferation in an infant with systemic hypertension[
In patients with CRS-PDA, the proportion of tubular-type (type C) PDA was higher, the PA side diameter was larger, and PDA was longer than in those with non-CRS-PDA. PH occurred more frequently in CRS-PDA and patients developed symptoms due to PH or heart failure at earlier ages. Accordingly, they needed transcatheter PDA occlusion therapy at younger age and with a smaller body size, and the ADO-II occlusion device was used more frequently.
Percutaneous closure of type C PDA is challenged by difficulty in satisfactorily stabilizing the prosthesis due to lack of a sufficient ampulla[
Histologically, smooth muscle cells migrate into the subendothelial region to form intimal thickening, leading to ductus closure[
This study has some potential limitations. Some CRS-PDA cases may have been included in the non-CRS-PDA group. Since this was a retrospective study in which medical charts and cardiologic data were reviewed, we were unable to distinguish if patients actually lacked clinical manifestations of CRS, if these manifestations were not recorded, or if they are still pending (e.g., hearing impairment or developmental delay). However, we believe we could minimize this by excluding children with non-cardiac CRS symptoms without known underlying diseases that can cause these symptoms, from the non-CRS-PDA group.
In conclusion, tubular-type PDA was frequently seen in patients with CRS and accompanied by pulmonary/systemic hypertension and pulmonary/aortic stenosis. Transcatheter closure of CRS-PDA requires a more cautious choice of device and more detailed follow-up after the intervention.
The study was conducted at CH1, Ho Chi Minh City, which covers sick children living in the southern and central areas of Vietnam. CH1 established the Department of Cardiology and started cardiac catheterization including transcatheter PDA therapy in 2009. For the first part of the study to describe clinical manifestations of CRS, we retrospectively enrolled patients with confirmed or probable CRS who were admitted to the Department of Cardiology or Neonatology between December 2010 and December 2012 and actively screened for CRS in the previous study[
We reviewed the charts and angiographic images of those who underwent transcatheter PDA closure and collected demographic and clinical information and ultrasonographic and angiographic results using a standardized data collection form. Two experienced pediatric cardiologists independently reviewed the angiographic images with Syngo FastView® (Siemens Healthineers, Erlangen, Germany), determined the PDA types, and measured the PDA and aorta sizes. They resolved any disagreements by discussion. We also reviewed the department records from 2011 to 2015 to determine the change in yearly numbers of catheterization for PDA occlusion. We described the characteristics of the children with CRS-PDA and compared them with those with non-CRS-PDA. The primary outcome was the proportion of type C (tubular-type) PDA, and the secondary outcomes were other cardiac comorbidities, PDA diameters (both PA and aortic sides), aorta diameter, PA and aorta pressure, and type of PDA occlusion device.
We used Krichenko's angiographic classification of PDAs, using the narrowest end of the ductus as a landmark[
PH, defined as systolic pulmonary artery pressure (sPAP) ≥ 35 mmHg[
Chi-square or Fisher's exact test (for categorical variables) and Wilcoxon rank sum test (for continuous variables) were used to compare demographic, clinical, or cardiac characteristics, including primary and secondary outcomes, between the two groups. Continuous variables were expressed as median and interquartile range. The ratio of the aorta diameter proximal to the PDA to the estimated diameter of the aorta just distal to the left subclavian artery's starting point was calculated and compared between the two groups to adjust the aorta's diameter by body size: diameter of the descending aorta just distal to the left subclavian artery (mm) = 15.3 × (body surface area in m
The patients' charts were reviewed by a doctor in the Department of Cardiology of CH1, and the data were anonymized. The institutional review boards of CH1, Ho Chi Minh City, and the Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, approved this study. This study was conducted in accordance with relevant guidelines and regulations.
We are grateful to Ms. Thu Hien Cong Pham, from Outreach and International Department in Children's Hospital 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, for great help to manage medical chart collection, and Dr. Kohei Toda, from WHO Country Office, Manila, the Philippines, for sharing the patient list of their previous study. The study was supported by the Joint Usage / Research Center on Tropical Disease, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University under Grant Number 27-Ippan-17 and AMED under Grant Number JP19fm0108001 (Japan Initiative for Global Research Network on Infectious Diseases (J-GRID)).
M.T. (first author) was responsible for the conception and design of the study, the acquisition, collation, and interpretation of the data, the statistical analysis, and the writing of the submitted article. C.G.T.D. and T.N.D. were involved in the conception and design of the study and the acquisition, collation and interpretation of the data, and revision of the submitted article. H.M. and H.F. were involved in the conception and design of the study, interpretation of the data, and revision of the submitted article. M.I. was involved in the acquisition, collation and interpretation of the data, and revision of the submitted article. H.M. was involved in the conception and design of the study and revision of the submitted article. N.N.T.L. and H.T.N. were involved in the implementation of the survey study, coordination and supervision of data collection, and revision of the submitted article. LM.Y. was involved in the conception and design of the study, the acquisition, collation, and interpretation of the data, revision of the submitted article, and coordination of the submission process.
The authors declare no competing interests.
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