About Us
Why Choose the UVa Children's Hospital Heart Center?UVa is home to one of the nation's top 25 adult-care heart centers. By bringing together the expertise of a dozen pediatric cardiologists, now UVa has created a heart center of excellence just for children and adults who've grown up with congenital heart disease.  Founded in July 1999, the UVa Children's Hospital Heart Center is a unique, collaboration between the UVa Children's Hospital and the adult-care Heart Center at UVa -- a state-of-the-art treatment and research facility. The UVA Children's Hospital Heart Center has clinics in Winchester, Lynchburg and Abingdon in addition to Charlottesville. This network of clinics reaches most children in Virginia. And through UVA's Telemedicine program, the center can provide virtual physicians through live video conferences to the communities in Virginia. 
What the UVa Children's Hospital Heart Center OffersPediatric Cardiovascular MedicineWe have the expertise to treat infants, children and adolescents with congenital or acquired heart disease, heart murmurs, chest pain, high blood pressure and heart rhythm disorders. Our patients also include adults who've grown up with congenital heart defects. Our services include:
You may not be familiar with all our complex services listed below. Go to All About Pediatric Cardiology for definitions of medical terms and other important information written just for our patients and their families. Our specialized services at UVa include:
Our laboratory services include:
Thoracic-Cardiovascular SurgeryUVa's cardiac surgery program is one of the largest in the mid-Atlantic region, with about 200 cases of congenital cardiac surgeries performed each year. The program is run by Dr. Irving Kron and Dr. Benjamin Peeler. We offer pediatric cardiac surgery for all congenital defects and are the only pediatric heart and lung transplant program in the state.  Non-Invasive ImagingWe have a comprehensive imaging program. Our Pediatric Echocardiography Laboratories offer transthoracic, transesophageal (intraoperative, inpatient and outpatient) and fetal echocardiography. Our echocardiography laboratories also work closely with our High-Risk Perinatal program to coordinate care and follow-up of fetuses with cardiac disease. Our imaging division works closely with UVa's Pediatric Radiology specialists in deciding the best or alternative imaging techniques in selected cases. We also have a state-of-the-art MRI facility for cardiac imaging and analysis. Specialized techniques include 3-D reconstruction, MR angiography and flow pattern analysis. Interventional Cardiac CatheterizationDavid Scott Lim, M.D., directs our pediatric cardiac catheterization laboratory, which offers a wide range of diagnostic and interventional catheterization procedures. These techniques can treat some types of congenital heart disease often without the use of general anesthesia. They can sometimes circumvent, minimize or augment surgical intervention. Services include:
Non-invasive Electrophysiology EvaluationAll our cardiologists handle rhythm disturbances in children, including fainting and passing out. Services include:
When invasive testing is needed we work with the electrophysiology service. Invasive Cardiac ElectrophysiologyJohn DiMarco, M.D., directs our interventional program in Cardiac Electrophysiology, which offers a full range of diagnostic and therapeutic services for simple and complex pediatric arrhythmias. Services include:
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