Objective:

To evaluate the capacity of red cell distribution width (RDW) to predict mortality in children undergoing cardiovascular surgery at the Fundación Hospital Infantil Napoleón Franco Pareja, in Colombia.

Method:

Retrospective cross-sectional analytical study that included 45 individuals aged 0 to 17 years operated for congenital heart disease. The RACHS-1 (Risk Adjustment in Congenital Heart Surgery) scale and laboratory variables including the RDW were applied. The association between RDW and mortality was determined by ROC curve analysis and Spearman's rho correlation.

Results:

An RDW greater than 15.52% represented 1.6 times more risk, compared to individuals below that value (95% confidence interval: 1.01-2.6; p = 0.034). The RDW values did not correlate with days of hospital stay or complications. The preoperative RDW and RACHS-1 score were significantly higher in the mortality group. The relationship between presurgical RDW and the RACHS-1 score was significant.

Conclusions:

In our study, the preoperative RDW had moderate power to discriminate perioperative mortality in the surgical correction of congenital heart disease. More studies with a larger sample size are required.