About the Topolewski Pediatric Heart Valve Center
The Topolewski Pediatric Heart Valve Center brings together a comprehensive team of experts from across the Cardiac Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) dedicated to improving treatment options and outcomes for children with congenital and pediatric acquired valve diseases. This multidisciplinary cooperative includes cardiac surgeons, cardiologists with expertise in interventional cardiology and cardiac imaging, scientists, researchers and a full range of clinical and ancillary support services. By bringing multiple disciplines under one umbrella, the Topolewski Pediatric Heart Valve Center takes a coordinated approach to treating valve disease and expanding existing knowledge of these complex conditions.
Congenital and acquired valve diseases are among the most common and severe forms of pediatric heart disease. Between 2015 and 2018, over 4,000 children with various valve disorders were seen at CHOP. In-person consultations can be safely conducted here at CHOP. If you and your family are unable to travel to the hospital, video consultations may be available.
World-leading experts
The Topolewski Pediatric Heart Valve Center combines unmatched expertise in diagnostics, surgical intervention and transcatheter procedures with groundbreaking research and the most advanced imaging techniques available. With a focus on congenital, rapidly progressive and acquired valve diseases, the Heart Valve team seeks to strategize new care pathways, utilize cutting edge technology in novel ways and develop breakthrough treatments for the thousands of children with congenital and acquired cardiac disease.
The Topolewski Pediatric Heart Valve Center was recently designated a Frontier Program by Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Frontier Programs are trailblazing initiatives that will forge important new discoveries, deliver novel therapies and redefine the future of pediatric medicine.
Conditions we treat
Children who are born with valve disease (congenital) usually require treatment as infants. Sometimes, congenital valve disease worsens over time, despite treatment. Other times, previous surgery or cardiac catherization has impacted a valve’s function, which may then deteriorate further over time.
The Topolewski Pediatric Heart Valve Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia treats children in all three of these categories, combining the latest research with remarkable innovation in technology and treatment. Through the development of new devices and surgical approaches, as well as the investigation of new ways to use existing devices, the center aims to expand available options and improve outcomes for children with congenital, progressive and acquired valve diseases.
Learn more about the specific conditions we treat:
- Aortic Regurgitation
- Aortic Stenosis
- Atrioventricular Canal Defects
- Ebstein’s Anomaly of the Tricuspid Valve
- Mitral Valve Defects
- Pulmonary Atresia
- Pulmonary Regurgitation
- Pulmonary Stenosis
- Single Ventricle Heart Defects
- Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF)
What to expect
The plan of care for a child with pediatric valve disease depends on the type and severity of their condition. Patients referred to the Topolewski Pediatric Heart Valve Center will undergo an initial consultation to evaluate their condition and determine next steps.