Neonatal Cardiovascular Center of Excellence

Our services

• Nurturing Environment for Small hearTs (NEST). Our Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Unit has a dedicated wing designed to foster development in newborns, featuring cycled lighting, low noise levels, and special support programs for families.
• GRowth And NeuroDevelopment (GRAND) Program. A specialized consulting team has developed interventions that promote healthy growth and brain development for our patients.
• Surgical repair of heart defects in premature and low-birth-weight infants. Our surgeons are experienced in correcting the most serious abnormalities in the smallest, most vulnerable patients.
• Catheter-based interventional palliation. These minimally invasive techniques can stabilize newborn patients who are at high risk of surgical complications.
• Single Ventricle Home Monitoring Program. Experts provide training and support so that parents of infants with hypoplastic left heart syndrome can safely monitor their child's health at home in between critical surgeries.
• Healthy Hearts and Minds Program. Designed to identify and address developmental and neurological issues in children born with heart defects, this program provides care throughout childhood.

Why choose UCSF?

We offer many advantages for families and their referring doctors, such as:

• Ongoing communication with referring providers on treatment plans, test results, procedure updates and discharge plans, with direct access to UCSF's electronic medical record system
• A staff dedicated to working with families on optimizing their infants' feeding, growth, development and comfort
• Locations throughout the Bay Area, making it easier for families to get care close to home
• A cardiologist available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for consultations or emergency referrals
• State-of-the-art treatments from doctors who are leading research on newborn heart care, genetic factors in heart birth defects, the neurodevelopmental effects of heart birth defects, and other areas of pediatric cardiology
• The latest technologies, including whole genome sequencing, a leading-edge genetic test for unexplained health complications in newborns
• Access to clinical trials (studies of promising experimental treatments) related to heart defects in newborn babies
• Extra support for babies and their families through such services as the Family Resource Center and our child life program

Research and education

In addition to providing tailored treatment for babies born with complex heart conditions, our Neonatal Cardiovascular Center of Excellence strives to improve care of these vulnerable patients through research and education. Our grant-funding program supports studies that will expand our knowledge of how to meet the needs of newborns with CHDs. We also have a fellowship training program for doctors specializing in neonatal cardiovascular care.