Cardiac Intensive Care
The Heart Institute at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center features the Midwest's first comprehensive Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU), providing state-of-the-art care for complex medical and surgical patients, from newborn to young adult. The CICU at Cincinnati Children's has the highest number of physicians in the Midwest who are board certified in both pediatric cardiology and pediatric critical care medicine.
This complex care includes:
- Neonatal diagnosis and stabilization
- Postoperative surgical care
- Care following complex catheter interventions and hybrid procedures
- Management of complex arrhythmias
- Care of pre- and post-operative cardiac transplant patients
- Management of pulmonary hypertension, heart failure and cardiomyopathy
- Care of patients with heart disease who require intensive care for non-cardiac diseases or surgeries
- Care of patients requiring mechanical heart assist, such as Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) or ventricular assist devices (Berlin Heart or others)
The Heart Institute's CICU has grown steadily over the past five years, at a rate of more than six percent annually. In 2008 the unit admitted and cared for over 550 patients, with a mortality rate of just 1.5 percent. The CICU has been a national leader in safety and improvement initiatives. For example, in a large national intensive care unit collaborative (NACHRI), the CICU at Cincinnati Children’s has consistently had one of the lowest rates of catheter-associated blood stream infections in the nation. The CICU expects to expand to 19 beds by 2010.
Board Certified Cardiac Specialists
The CICU at Cincinnati Children's has the highest number of physicians in the Midwest who are board certified in both pediatric cardiology and pediatric critical care medicine.
CICU attending physicians are experts in cardiac intensive care. Current attending physicians include members from both the Heart Institute and the Division of Critical Care Medicine:
The majority of patients are admitted in transfer from referring hospitals and physicians or following cardiac surgery. However, on occasion, a patient may be admitted directly from a home setting after referral from a physician.
Physicians interested in making a referral should contact an attending physician in the CICU by calling the Physician Priority Link (513-636-4010) or the CICU (513-636-4007) or by visiting our referral information page.
