Objective:

To measure anxiety levels in parents of infants and young children under 24 months referred to pediatric cardiology due to heart murmurs and to investigate the impact of expert assessment and echocardiography.

Approach:

• Study Design: A prospective study involving parents of 241 asymptomatic children under 24 months referred for cardiac evaluation due to murmurs.
• Anxiety Measurement: Parental anxiety was measured using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-S) before and after a comprehensive clinical evaluation, including echocardiography.
• ECHO Findings Categorization: Participants were categorized based on echocardiographic findings: normal, benign physiological findings, and minor structural anomalies requiring follow-up.

Key Findings:

• Meanpre-consultationSTAI-Sscorewas51.17±6.34,significantlydecreasingto45.89±7.84afterevaluation(p<0.001).AnxietylevelsdroppedsignificantlyacrossallECHOgroups(p<0.001),withnostatisticaldifferenceinanxietyreductionbetweengroups(p=0.108).Afamilyhistoryofheartdiseasewastheonlysignificantindependentpredictorofincreasedpre-examinationanxiety(β=2.129;p=0.031).

Interpretation:

Specialized pediatric cardiology consultation and echocardiographic evaluation significantly reduce parental anxiety.

Limitations:

• The study only included parents of children under 24 months and may not be generalizable to older children.
• The sample size may limit the ability to detect smaller differences in anxiety reduction between ECHO groups.

Conclusion:

Clinicians should prioritize early, tailored communication for high-risk families with a family history of heart disease to manage the psychological burden of a heart murmur referral.