During your journey there may be times when you will need to be admitted for inpatient care at the University Hospitals of Leicester. This may be for planned heart surgery, keyhole procedures in our Catheter lab, or when you are transferred from another hospital for ongoing care. 

Heart Surgery

 Heart surgery and Catheter procedures take place in the East Midlands Congenital Heart Centre at the Glenfield Hospital in Leicester. Most operations are planned and patients are typically in hospital for a week. Some patients require emergency surgery in which case inpatient stays are usually longer. To find out more about heart surgery at Glenfield hospital, please click HERE. 

Catheter Procedures

 These are keyhole procedures using x-ray guidance. They typically take 1 or 2 hours. Discharge home the same day may be possible, but often patients stay overnight so that checks can be performed the following day. Examples of these procedures include closing holes in the heart, opening up narrowings in arteries and even inserting new heart valves. For further information about Catheter procedures, please click HERE. 

Longer Stay

 Sometimes it's necessary to have a prolonged period of treatment which could extend to several weeks. This may or may not include a heart operation or catheter procedure. The congenital heart team will review patients every day to monitor progress. There are facilities onsite for family members to stay for extended periods if required.