Congenital Case Requirement for Continuing Certification
Diplomates must submit a log of all major cases performed during any twelve consecutive months of the two-year period immediately preceding the Continuing Certification application. For example, for the 2024 application, the case log may include cases from April 1, 2022 – March 30, 2023 or from May 1, 2023 – April 30, 2024), and must meet the following case requirements:
Case Requirements
To maintain active certification status, Diplomates are required to provide evidence of having performed or directly supervised an ACGME congenital program resident/fellow in at least 50 congenital cardiac surgeries in patients 18 years of age or younger, or re-operation of prior congenital cardiac surgery on patients of any age during the reporting period. Up to a maximum of 25 specified STAT category 4 or 5 cases in which the applicant has participated in the critical portion of the case with another congenital cardiac surgeon may be counted toward the requirement. See below for approved STAT Category 4 and 5 cases.
Case Requirements: Distribution
In order to ensure an appropriately diverse distribution of cases, the applicant’s case log cannot exceed a maximum of the specified number for the following cases for credit toward the requirement of 50 major congenital cases:
- 5 Secundum atrial septal defect and/or patent foramen ovale closure procedures
- 5 Patent ductus arteriosus ligation and/or division
- 5 Pulmonary artery banding
- 5 Right ventricle-to-pulmonary artery conduit insertion/replacement and/or pulmonary valve replacement
- 5 Other valve repair / replacement (age 18 and under, only)
STAT Category 4 and 5 Cases
Below is the list of STAT Category 4 and 5 cases in which two congenital cardiac surgeons have participated in the critical portions of the case together that may be counted by each operator toward the requirement:
STAT Category 4
Aortic arch repair
Aortic arch + VSD repair
Aortic dissection repair
Aortic root replacement – homograft
Aortic root translocation over left ventricle (including Nikaidoh procedure)
Arterial switch operation and VSD repair
Arterial switch operation + aortic arch repair
Arterial switch operation and VSD repair + aortic arch repair
Cardiac tumor resection
CC-TGA repair, VSD closure and LV-to-PA conduit
Double outlet left ventricle repair
Double outlet right ventricle intraventricular tunnel repair
Ebstein anomaly repair
Fontan revision or conversion (re-do Fontan)
HLHS biventricular repair
Hybrid approach, Stage 1, application of RPA and LPA bands
Interrupted aortic arch repair
Pulmonary atresia-VSD-MAPCA (pseudotruncus) repair
Pulmonary venous stenosis repair
Ross-Konno procedure
Senning procedure
TAPVC repair
TGA, other procedures (Kawashima, LV-PA conduit, other)
TOF – AVC (AVSD) repair
TOF – absent pulmonary valve repair
Transplant, heart
Truncus arteriosus repair
Unifocalization of MAPCAs
Valve replacement, common atrioventricular valve
Valvuloplasty converted to valve replacement in the same operation, aortic, with Ross procedure
Valvuloplasty converted to valve replacement in the same operation, aortic, with Ross-Konno procedure
Valvuloplasty converted to valve replacement in the same operation, common atrioventricular valve
STAT Category 5
CC-TGA repair, arterial switch and ASO (double switch)
CC-TGA repair, atrial switch and Rastelli
Damus-Kaye-Stansel procedure (creation of AP anastomosis without arch reconstruction
Hybrid approach, Stage 1, stent placement in arterial duct (PDA) + application of RPA, etc
Hybrid approach, Stage 2, aortopulmonary amalgamation + superior cavopulmonary anastomosis(es), PA de-banding + aortic arch repair (Norwood Stage 1) + superior cavopulmonary anastomosis(es) + PA de-banding
Norwood procedure
TAPVC repair + shunt, systemic-to-pulmonary artery
Transplant, heart and lung
Truncus + interrupted aortic arch repair