The Norwood Procedure for Pediatric Patients
The Norwood procedure is the first in a series of three open-heart operations done for a patient with severe heart conditions. The three operations improve the condition of the child's heart, although it does not cure or rebuild the heart completely.
Norwood Procedure
What Does the Norwood Procedure Treat?
The Norwood procedure is performed on pediatric patients with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS). |
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 Patient Story: Zoe
Three major operations before the age of 2. Today, Zoe visits Children's when she wants to—as a volunteer. |
What Should the Norwood Procedure do?
The Norwood procedure helps rebuild the heart to function better. It uses the child's single pumping chamber to support the body while supplying blood-flow to the lungs through a small plastic 'shunt' or tube.
- Stage I: Provide circulation to the body from the right ventricle
- Stage II: Allows blood from the upper half of the body to drain into the lungs directly
- Stage III: Allows the blood from the lower half of the body to drain into the lungs directly
Why Children’s?
Surgeons at Children’s have performed more than 200 Stage 1 Norwood procedures since 2000. With a 91 percent 30-day in-hospital survival rate in 2005, we have some of the best outcomes in the country.