Our pediatric cardiac surgery program provides the full spectrum of pediatric heart surgery care for neonatal, pediatric and adolescent cardiac patients.

Why is Children's Mercy the best hospital for heart surgery?
Children's Mercy in Kansas City, Missouri, ranks among the top three pediatric hospitals in the nation for annual volume of surgical procedures. Our heart surgery program is the only one within a 150- county region that offers cardiac surgery for newborns, and our pediatric heart surgery program also covers adults with congenital heart problems.

The best pediatric heart surgeons in the Midwest are at Children's Mercy.
Children's Mercy is the only hospital in the region where a board-certified pediatric intensivist is in-house 24 hours per day to provide care for children who need heart surgery. Read more about our pediatric cardiac surgeons.

Physicians
Lofland, Gary K., MD
Specialty Interests: Pediatric cardiac surgery, reconstructive cardiac surgery, adult congenital heart disease

O'Brien, James E., MD
Specialty Interests: Pediatric and Adult Congenital Heart Surgery

What kind of pediatric heart surgery does Children's Mercy provide?
Our cardiac surgeons are dedicated to the care of children with heart disease. We provide a full range of cardiac surgery services for the treatment of congenital heart defects, abnormalities of the vessels and valves, atrial and ventricular septal defects as well as pediatric ancillary services for the patient's family.

What kind of pediatric heart surgery volume does Children's Mercy do?
Our Cardiovascular Surgery proficiency is maintained by its increasing surgery volume. In 2000, we performed 460 cardiopulmonary bypass cases ranking us among the volume leading children's hospitals nationally and internationally.

When my child needs heart surgery.
Children's Mercy offers state-of-the-art heart surgery facilities specifically equipped for pediatric cardiac surgery. In fact, we recently expanded our heart surgery facilities. Click here to see our heart surgery pre-operation video.

What kind of medications are frequently used after heart surgery?
A complete list of the most frequently used medications after heart surgery are listed in detail under Frequently Asked Questions.

Heart Surgery Care Cards:
After Cardiac Surgery: Getting Ready to Go Home
Going Home After Cardiac Surgery

Cardiac Surgery for

• Atrial septal defect
• Ventricular septal defect
• Patent ductus arteriousis
• Coarctation of the aorta
• Single ventricle (Bidirectional Glenn and Fontan Operations)
• Atrioventricular canal defect
• Right ventricular outflow tract obstruction
• Transposition of great arteries
• Tetralogy of fallot
• Tricuspid atresia
• Ebstein's anomaly
• Vascular rings
• Interrupted aortic arch
• Coronary artery anomalies
• Cardiac masses
• Pulmonary stenosis
• Total (and partial) anomalous pulmonary venous connection
• Hypoplastic left heart syndrome (Norwood Operation)
• Aortic valve disease (aortic valve replacement/repair, Ross procedure)
• Truncus arteriosis
• Mitral valve disease
• Subaortic membrane
• Cortriatriatum
• Left ventricular outflow tract obstruction
• Congenital heart block

Heart Surgery Services

• Consultation
• Prenatal consultation
• Surgical repair of all congenital heart defects
• Pediatric ancillary services essential for care of the family with a child undergoing cardiac surgery

Children's Mercy Hospitals and Clinics is the Kansas City region's exclusive pediatric medical center and health care network. Our physicians, nurses and technicians are all trained specifically to work with children. We provide the finest care possible in the following pediatric subspecialties: Adolescent Medicine; Allergy/Asthma/Immunology, Anesthesiology; Bone Marrow Transplant; Burn/Trauma Care; Cardiology; Cardiovascular Surgery Cleft Palate/Craniofacial; Clinical Pharmacology; Clinical Toxicology; Critical Care Medicine; Dentistry; Dermatology; Developmental and Behavioral Sciences; Ear, Nose and Throat (Otorhinolaryngology); Emergency Medicine; Endocrinology/Diabetes; Gastroenterology; General Pediatrics; General/Thoracic/Urologic Surgery; Genetics; Gynecological Surgery; Hearing and Speech; Liver Transplant; Hematology/Oncology; Home Care; Hospitalists; Infectious Disease; Medical Research; Minimally Invasive Surgery; Neonatology; Nephrology; Neurology; Neurosurgery; Nursing; Occupational Therapy; Ophthalmology, Orthopaedic Surgery; Pathology/Laboratory Medicine; Physical Therapy; Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery; Pulmonology; Radiology; Rehabilitation Medicine; Respiratory Care; Rheumatology; Transport; Transplantation; Vision Sciences. Click here for additional information.