Cardiac emergencies in children represent an extremely important issue in medical practice. In general, interventional treatment could be optional in many situations, however it can be indicated in emergency conditions. There are many diseases at pediatric age that can benefit from interventional treatment, thus reducing the surgical risks and subsequent complications. Balloon atrioseptostomy, patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) closure, percutaneous or hybrid closure of a ventricular septal defect, pulmonary or aortic valvuloplasty, balloon angioplasty for aortic coarctation, implantation of a stent for coarctation of the aorta, for severe stenosis of the infundibulum of the right ventricle, or for PDA correction are among the procedures that can be performed in emergency situations. This review aims to present the current state of the art in the field of pediatric interventional cardiology.

The aim of our study was to investigate the correlation between volumes of thoracic fat distributed in different compartments and geometry of vulnerable coronary plaques assessed by coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA), in patients with acute chest pain. Methods: This was a non-randomized, observational, single-center study, including 50 patients who presented in the emergency department with acute chest pain who underwent 128-slice single-source CCTA. Plaque geometry was evaluated in transversal and longitudinal planes, and the assessment of adipose tissue was performed using the Syngo.via Frontier (Siemens AG, Healthcare Sector, Forchheim, Germany) research platform. Results: Eccentric plaques presented a significantly higher incidence of spotty calcification (40% vs. 22%, p = 0.018), whereas positive remodeling, volume of low attenuation plaque, and incidence of napkin-ring sign were not significantly different between the study groups or in ascending versus descending plaques. The volume of pericoronary fat around the plaque was significantly larger near eccentric lesions (707.68 ± 454.08 mm3 vs. 483.25 ± 306.98 mm3, p = 0.046) and descendent plaques (778.26 ± 479.37 mm3 vs. 473.60 ± 285.27 mm3, p = 0.016). Compared to ascending lesions, descendent ones presented a significantly larger volume of thoracic fat (1,599.25 ± 589.12 mL vs. 1,240.71 ± 291.50 mL), while there was no significant correlation between thoracic fat and cross-sectional eccentricity. Conclusions: The phenotype of plaque distribution and geometry seems to be associated with a higher vulnerability of coronary lesions and may be influenced by the local accumulation of inflammatory mediators released by the pericoronary epicardial adipose tissue.

Coronary heart disease occurs more often in patients over the age of 45. However, recent data shows a growing incidence of coronary events in younger patients also. Young patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) represent a relatively small proportion of subjects suffering from an acute ischemic event. However, they represent a subset that is distinguished from elderly patients by a different profile of risk factors, often atypical clinical presentation, and different prognosis. The prevalence of risk factors such as smoking, dyslipidemia, and a family history of coronary events is higher in this group of patients compared to the general population with AMI. Because of an important negative impact on the patients’ psychology, impaired working abilities, and a high socioeconomical burden, myocardial infarction in young patients represents an important cardiovascular pathology. This manuscript aims to present the particularities of AMI occuring at a young age, in comparison with the rest of the population with AMI.