[Computed tomography for imaging of pediatric congenital heart disease].

Congenital heart diseases are the most common congenital abnormalities of development. In general, echocardiography and cardiac catheter angiography are considered the gold standard for the evaluation of congenital heart disease. Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging has become an important supplementary imaging modality because of its ability to provide an accurate morphological and functional evaluation. The role of cardiac computed tomography in the imaging of patients with congenital heart disease is becoming increasingly more important due to the development of low radiation dose protocols and improvements in the spatial and temporal resolution. In the preoperative depiction and follow-up after surgical repair of congenital heart diseases, cardiac computed tomography provides detailed information of the heart, the venous and arterial pulmonary circulation as well as systemic arteries. This article reviews the technical aspects of cardiac CT and the modification of examination protocols according to the expected pathology and patient age. The potentials and limitations of the various radiation dose reduction strategies are outlined.