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Interventional Cardiology Research and Innovation at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh

Innovative Contributions to the Field of Congenital Heart Disease

  • 1977: Sang Park, MD, develops the Park Blade Septostomy Catheter and blade atrial septostomy procedure. They enlarge openings in the heart for treatment of infants with cyanotic CHD.
  • 1990s: Early adoption of transcatheter ASD device closure, including taking part in the pivotal clinical trial for the Amplatzer septal occluder device.
  • 2007 to Present: Consistent involvement in landmark multicenter clinical device trials. Continued national/global quality improvement work through the C3PO, IMPACT and CCRC registries.
  • 2010: First U.S. transcatheter pulmonary valve (Melody TPV) implant by Jacqueline Kreutzer, MD, after FDA approval.
  • 2020: Pioneered clinical outcomes research in CHD leading to innovations in management of cyanotic neonates. Bryan Goldstein, MD, co-founded and leads the Congenital Cardiac Research Collaborative (CCRC).
  • Present day: Among the first in the world after FDA approval to implant the Harmony TPV (2021) and the Alterra Adaptive Prestent + Sapien 3 THV (2022) to restore pulmonary valve function after childhood intervention for CHD 

Heart Cath Research from Experts at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh

We take part in a wide range of catheterization research, including invasive physiological assessment of and interventional treatments for CHD.

View recent publications from members of our team:


Contact the Interventional Cardiology Program at UPMC Children's