I probably should have titled this thread translational research rather than clinical research. I know that there is alot of clinical studies following various populations. However, I am more interested in research taking basic science ideas and applying them to clinical medicine. Since peds cards is primarly structural problems it seems, at least to me, that most of the advance in the field have to come from either surgery or interventional cards. How about the future potential to find new medical treatments for congential heart disease.
Research in pedi cards truly cuts across every spectrum of research. I think we tend to get caught up in the TERMS "translational" "clinical" "basic science" too much.
Traditionally, pedi cards research was focused on animal models of fetal and perinatal physiology, as reflected by the classic work by Rudolph and Tooley and many others at CVRI in San Francisco.
More recently, there has been a shift in focus to the work described by Scholes that is more basic in nature, but still patient focused.
There is also a good bit of research being done into more "technology" or "engineering" aspects of pedi cardiology that is largely paralleling the type of work done in adults on improving stents, etc.
Lots of research into outcomes, epidemiology and clinical protocols as well. Unlike neonatologists, pedi cardiologists occasionally disagree about management strategies.
As such, improving medical management of congenital heart disease (perhaps especially as related to rhythm disturbances which are very common) is a key area of research.
Bottom line, you can do any type of research in pedi cards, whatever name you wish to put to it. There is a huge need for academic pedi cardiologists willing to commit to an academic research career. These are tremendous folks and I admire them greatly.
