Objective: To describe the clinical characteristics, evaluate the outcomes of congenital heart surgery, and identify factors associated with in-hospital mortality at Children's Hospital 2 from 2018 to 2022.
Methods: Single-center retrospective cohort study of 900 patients. Two logistic regression models were constructed: Model 1 included preoperative variables; Model 2 additionally included postoperative complications to explore their association with in-hospital mortality.
Results: Males 53.2%; mean age 483 days. VSD most common (48.4%). In-hospital mortality was 5.7% (51/900). Mortality increased during 2021–2022, and was significantly higher than in the pre-pandemic 2018–2019 period (7.2% vs. 4.9%; p = 0.032). Model 1: RACHS-1 (OR = 2.45), heart failure (OR = 2.12), age < 30 days (OR = 1.92), pulmonary hypertension (OR = 1.88), weight < 3 kg (OR = 1.78), SpO2 < 85% (OR = 1.65); AUC = 0.81. Model 2 added postoperative complications (OR = 2.67); AUC = 0.86.
Conclusion: RACHS-1 complexity and preoperative heart failure were the strongest factors associated with in-hospital mortality. Postoperative complications may lie on the pathway between preoperative severity and in-hospital mortality. However, formal mediation analysis was not performed and further studies are needed to clarify this relationship.