Dr. Lars Erickson
Pediatric Cardiology
Worcester, MA
39 years experience male
Locations
Office
Worcester, MA
Phone
Insurances accepted
Aetna
Blue cross blue shield
Cigna
Medicaid
Other
United healthcare
About
Bio
Dr. Erickson has a special interest in ambulatory pediatric cardiology, the diagnosis and management of heart problems in children in the outpatient setting. He also has training in public health and has published research on the factors that predict the best results after heart surgery in children.
SpecialtiesDoctors may have more than one area of specialty interest. Board certification in a specialty area means the doctor has completed formal training and has practice experience in that specialty, and has passed the certification examination from the corresponding accredited medical specialty board.
Doctors may have more than one area of specialty interest. Board certification in a specialty area means the doctor has completed formal training and has practice experience in that specialty, and has passed the certification examination from the corresponding accredited medical specialty board.
Pediatric Cardiology
Languages spoken
English
Doctor Q&A
26 Answers
10 Agrees
The number of answers this doctor has agreed with.
A 31-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
All newborns have it: A patent foramen ovale (pfo) is present in all babies prior to birth and just after birth. This hole between the two upper chambers (right and left a... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 30-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
It depends: About 1% of all children have some form of congenital heart disease, many of which are "holes" or defects between chambers. Most of these are very mi... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 16-year-old female asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Atypical: Heart attacks are very rare in children, but can occur if a child is born with abnormal coronary arteries, has extraordinarily high cholesterol or con... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 25-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Depends: A heart murmur is the sound that blood makes when it flows through the heart. Most heart murmurs are normal sounds ("innocent" murmurs), which occur ... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 42-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Usually not: A muscular ventricular septal defect (vsd) is a special type of vsd (there are many kinds). The vast majority of small muscular vsds require no treat... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 40-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Possibly: The most common causes of racing heart rate in children is stress/anxiety. Also common is supraventricular tachycardia (svt) which is a racing heartb... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 23-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
It depends...: By itself, having the heart on the right side (dextrocardia) is not harmful. However, about 30-40% of individuals with dextrocardia also have other h... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 56-year-old male asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Mostly systolic: The systolic pressure (upper number) is best understood in terms of what is normal and the relationship between BP and risk of stroke and heart diseas... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 39-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
No: Pulmonary stenosis (ps) without other heart problems is relatvely easy to manage. Only a small fraction of children with ps require any sort of repai... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 51-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Many causes: Dizziness can be due to low blood pressure (bp), brain problems, low sugar, hyperventilation, vertigo, stress/anxiety and other causes. Dizziness tha... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 27-year-old male asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Almost certainly: The high heart rate of kawasaki disase (kd) is usually only present during the febrile phase. Those who are treated with ivig only very rarely have l... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 36-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Yes: A heart murmur is any extra sound that the blood makes flowing in the heart, including both abnormal sounds caused by heart problems (pathological mur... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 17-year-old female asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Pretty normal: Older children and adults control their temperature if they are cold or ill by decreasing circulation to the hands, feet and area around the mouth, re... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 27-year-old male asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Uviitis: Kawasaki disease includes inflammation of many parts of the body, including the eyes (anterior uviitis) that can result in sensitivity to light. This... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 20-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
It's very common: A heart murmur is the sound that blood makes when it flows through the heart. Sometimes a murmur can be caused by a malformation of the heart (tight ... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 35-year-old male asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
A few things...: After a mustard procedure there are three main issues: tiring out of the chamber that pumps to the body (right ventricle), leaking of the valve leadin... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 47-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Usually not: Generally the two are not related to each other. A murmur is a sound caused by the flow of blood in the heart. In children and young adults, most mu... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 22-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Yes but it's unusual: Aortic stenosis (as) is narrowing of the valve leading from the heart to the body, and usually causes no symptoms in children unless it is quite sever... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 18-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Up to 130 systolic: The blood pressure measurement has two components: the systolic (upper) pressure and the diastolic (lower) pressure. We usually use the systolic pres... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 21-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Usually so: Technically, everyone is born with a "hole in their heart" between the upper chambers (atria) called a patent foramen ovale (pfo). This closes gradua... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 34-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Longer on average: The decision whether to use surgery to treat aortic stenosis (as) is based on weighing the risk of the surgery against the risk of leaving the as alon... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 31-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
Depends quite a bit: For children who have have non-emergency surgery at < 1 year old at a hospital that does at least 200 childhood heart surgeries per year, the risk of ... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 32-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
No: A patent foramen ovale (pfo) is present in all babies prior to birth and just after birth. This hole between the two upper chambers (right and left a... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 38-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
In the right setting: Some severe forms of severe congenital heart disease are not compatible with life without surgical repair, so in some cases emergency surgery in the n... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 22-year-old member asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
No: Smoking greatly increases your risk of heart attacks, stroke and lung cancer, so it's not okay for anyone to smoke. In addition smoking creates risk ... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 49-year-old female asked:
Dr. Lars Ericksonanswered
Pediatric Cardiology 39 years experience
No but..: Plavix (clopidogrel) should not cause any sort of heart arrhythmias. Most people occasionally feel a flutter in their heart, usually related to harml... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
TestimonialsRecommendations and Thank you notes are endorsements given from patients or other doctors.
Recommendations and Thank you notes are endorsements given from patients or other doctors.
2
Recommendations
107
Thank you notes
HealthTap member
Mar 30, 2015
Dr. Erickson is an amazing doctor! #nationaldoctorsday2015 #virtualflower1
HealthTap member
Mar 31, 2015
Dr. Erickson is an amazing doctor! #nationaldoctorsday2015 #virtualflower1
HealthTap member
Thank you for taking the time in answering my question. I am still working out and eating well. My latest BP is still averaging around 134/68 and my BPM is around 50. I am 56 years old and I broke my ...Read More
HealthTap member
Thanks so much! It seems to be higher when I drink coffee, but its lower later on.
HealthTap member
thank you doctor i really appreciate your valueable info.
Education & Training
Medical/Graduate school
Duke University School of Medicine, NC
Graduated 1984MD
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