Chennai, August 5: Apollo Children’s Hospital, Chennai, has crossed a major milestone in paediatric cardiac care, completing over 6,000 paediatric cardiac surgeries and 10,000 paediatric cardiac interventional procedures since the establishment of its Department of Cardiac Sciences in 2009.
The hospital’s team has treated children with both congenital and acquired heart diseases, including some of the most complex and high-risk cases in newborns and infants. Pediatric heart disease is considered one of the most challenging areas of medicine. In India, nearly eight out of every 1,000 children are born with congenital heart defects, amounting to around 300,000 affected children every year.
Apollo Children’s Hospitals addresses this health challenge through a multidisciplinary approach, providing advanced, individualised surgical and interventional care to infants, children, and young adults.
The paediatric cardiac unit is led by Senior Consultant Paediatric Cardiac Surgeon Dr. Neville Solomon and Senior Consultant Interventional Cardiologist Dr. C. S. Muthukumaran. Procedures carried out include arterial switch operations and Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Connection (TAPVC) surgeries in newborns, complex aortic arch reconstructions, valve repairs, surgeries for tetralogy of Fallot and pulmonary atresia, single ventricle palliation, and complex redo surgeries. The youngest baby operated on was three hours old, while the smallest weighed 650 grams.
In an official statement, Dr. Solomon highlighted, “Pediatric cardiac surgery requires precision, timing, and a deep understanding of congenital heart defects. At Apollo Children’s Hospitals, our approach integrates high-resolution diagnostics, evidence-based protocols, and real-time decision-making.”
Parallelly, Dr. Muthukumaran emphasised that paediatric interventional cardiology has evolved to allow the treatment of many congenital heart defects through minimally invasive techniques, reducing the need for open-heart surgery and shortening recovery times.
According to hospital officials, the milestone also includes more than 3,000 complex neonatal cardiac surgeries, 40 ECMO procedures, and paediatric heart transplants carried out in collaboration with Apollo’s transplant team. The team has also performed 1,500 additional surgeries at other Apollo branches and during international medical missions in Iraq and Nigeria.
Apollo Children’s Hospital has also been the site of other complex paediatric surgeries, including the successful separation of conjoined twins. The facility is equipped with advanced diagnostic tools, paediatric cardiac catheterisation laboratories, state-of-the-art operating theatres, and dedicated paediatric intensive care units.
Dr. Ilankumaran Kaliamoorthy, Chief Executive Officer (Chennai Region), said the achievement reflects Apollo’s commitment to paediatric care and the impact of saving a child’s heart on the future of a family.
Apollo Hospitals was founded in 1983 by Dr. Prathap C. Reddy as India’s first corporate hospital. Today, the group has over 12,000 beds across 72 hospitals, 5,000 pharmacies, more than 400 primary care clinics, 1,228 diagnostic centres, 700-plus teleclinics, over 15 medical education centres, and a research foundation focused on global clinical trials. Its facilities include South East Asia’s first Proton Therapy Centre in Chennai.
The group says it touches a million lives every four days and has been recognised with a commemorative stamp by the Government of India. Dr. Reddy was awarded the Padma Vibhushan in 2010.
For four decades, Apollo Hospitals has been ranked among the best hospitals in the country for advanced medical services, with a focus on innovation, clinical expertise, and technology.
