Cardiac Neurodevelopmental Care

When your child has heart surgery early in life, their follow-up care doesn’t stop at their heart. Our cardiac neurodevelopmental care helps your child reach important milestones in movement, learning, language, and behavior so they can grow and thrive after heart surgery.
Request an Appointment
For all requests:
1-319-356-2852
For all other requests:
1-888-573-5437

Cardiac neurodevelopmental care is a specialized follow-up for children with congenital or acquired heart disease. It looks beyond the heart itself, focusing on how a child’s condition and treatment may affect brain development, learning, and growth.

Babies who need heart surgery in the first year of life often spend time in intensive care, where surgery, oxygen levels, and recovery can influence how they eat, move, communicate, and reach developmental milestones.

At University of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Children’s Hospital, we partner with you to track your child’s development and make sure they have the tools and therapies they need to succeed. Our program identifies potential challenges early and provides coordinated support that helps your child reach their full potential.

Our approach to cardiac neurodevelopmental care

Our cardiac neurodevelopmental care team provides ongoing assessments and guidance tailored to your child’s unique needs. Our program evaluates:

  • Motor coordination and strength
  • Speech and language skills
  • Cognitive and problem-solving ability
  • Emotional regulation and behavior

By identifying areas where extra support is needed, we help you access early interventions that improve long-term growth and learning outcomes.

We then coordinate with your child’s cardiologist and primary care provider to make developmental care part of their overall heart health plan.

What to expect

Our visits are interactive, supportive, and focused on helping you feel confident about your child’s progress. We’re here to celebrate each milestone and guide you through every phase of growth after heart surgery.

Before and during your visit

At each visit, our team takes time to understand your child’s medical history, development, and day-to-day needs. We will:

  • Review your child’s medical history and developmental milestones
  • Conduct standardized developmental testing across motor, language, cognitive, and social areas
  • Meet with you and your child for a full assessment with a pediatric nurse or developmental specialist

You won’t leave with unanswered questions. During the visit, we will:

  • Share same-day feedback about your child’s strengths and areas for growth
  • Discuss results in clear, family-friendly language
  • Teach practical strategies you can use at home to support development
  • Creating a plan and ongoing support

Creating an ongoing support plan

Together, we’ll build next steps that fit your child and your family. This may include:

  • A personalized action plan, including referrals for physical, occupational, or speech therapy
  • Connections to community resources and early-intervention services
  • Support with educational planning, such as IEP or 504 guidance

You’ll also have a dedicated care coordinator who keeps communication open and helps keep your child’s developmental plan on track between visits.

Beyond appointments, we connect families to long-term resources, including:

  • Early-intervention programs and local therapy providers
  • Heart Friends, a parent-to-parent support network coordinated through our team

Who can benefit from cardiac neurodevelopmental care

Your child may benefit from cardiac neurodevelopmental care if they’ve had surgery or treatment for congenital or acquired heart disease, especially within the first year of life. Even if your child appears to be developing on track, follow-up ensures they continue to meet milestones and helps address concerns early.

When to get care

We recommend that children begin cardiac neurodevelopmental care soon after their first heart surgery or hospitalization. Early follow-up allows our team to spot small developmental differences before they become larger challenges.

You should schedule an appointment if your child:

  • Had heart surgery before age one
  • Has a complex or cyanotic (low oxygen) heart condition
  • Experienced a long hospital stay
  • Has had feeding difficulties
  • Shows signs of developmental delay or behavior change

Most children benefit from ongoing evaluations every six to 12 months during the early years, when development is fastest.

Ready to schedule your child’s neurodevelopmental evaluation?

Call 319-356-2852, and we’ll connect you with our care coordinator, who can answer questions and help arrange your first visit.
Call 1-888-573-5437

Locations and Offices

Pediatric Specialty Clinic (2 JPP)
2800 John Pappajohn Pavilion (JPP)
Elevator I, Level 2
1-319-356-2229
Clinic
Pediatric Specialty Clinic Main Entrance
In Stead Family Children's Hospital
200 Hawkins Drive, Iowa City, IA 52242
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