The accuracy of an abbreviated echocardiographic protocol for the detection of congenital heart disease in newborns

Introduction: Although prenatal detection rates of congenital heart disease (CHD) have improved over time with modifications of scanning guidelines, in Australia, approximately 1/3 of infants with CHD are detected postnatally and delivered in centres without cardiac services. Retrieval of these sick newborns without a clear diagnosis creates problems for both patient management and the location of the receiving hospital. The objective of this study was to determine the diagnostic accuracy of an abbreviated echocardiogram protocol to expedite the detection of major CHD in newborns.