Dr. Alessandro Giardini

Being told there could be something wrong with your child’s heart is a very distressing and scary situation. You want the best expert advice and care for your child and may feel that the referral system is a remote process that gives little sense of reassurance that you will find the quality of care that you are looking for.

My name is Alessandro Giardini and I am a Consultant Paediatric Cardiologist working in London; my NHS practice is based at the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children in London, where I am the Lead of Inpatient Services. I am in charge of the cardiology ward and the high dependency unit.

Practising as a paediatric cardiologist in such a world class institution ensures that I collaborate with and have access to the best of paediatric interventional cardiologists and cardiac surgeons and to the best facilities in the UK. My unit at GOSH in London is a world leader in cardiac care and has pioneered techniques such as transcatheter pulmonary valve replacement. My involvement in paediatric cardiac research means that your child will be treated according to the latest and most successful techniques.

The heart is the engine of life and has a prodigious capacity but inevitably for such a crucial organ there are many ways in which it can malfunction. 8 children in a 1000 are born with a congenital heart defect (CHD). Fortunately, only a quarter of them will require treatment but for those that do there are now appropriate interventions for many of these conditions. I am experienced in the diagnosis and management of a wide range of congenital heart defects in babies, children and adolescents.