Children's heart surgery suspended at Leeds General Infirmary after fears over death rates Leeds General Infirmary has suspended heart operations death rate fears The department will be closed while an internal review is carried out Also emerged a surgeon in the department has been banned from operating The department was already facing closure as part of an NHS shake-up By Eleanor Harding UPDATED: 09:05, 29 March 2013 Children's heart operations were suspended at a leading hospital last night over fears that too many patients were dying. Leeds General Infirmary was forced to close its children's heart unit after data emerged showing an unexpectedly high mortality rate. NHS bosses have closed the department while they conduct an internal review of the data, which is expected to last several weeks. Leeds General Infirmary was forced to close its children's heart unit after data emerged showing an unexpectedly high mortality rate It is understood the alarm was raised when auditors spotted that the mortality rate in the department was higher than expected. The review will also look into a number of claims made about patient outcomes in the unit. The department is already under pressure after it emerged on Sunday that one of its senior surgeons has been banned from operating. It also narrowly escaped closure on Wednesday when Mrs Justice Nicola Davies ruled further consultation was necessary. Yesterday's review was ordered after hospital bosses met with officials from NHS England and the Care Quality Commission. Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust said it would be 'independently validated' and supported by external experts. NHS England said the closure was taken as a 'precautionary step' to ensure the safety of child patients. Sir Bruce Keogh, the medical director of NHS England, said: 'Some questions have been raised by the trust's own mortality data and by other information. The department narrowly escaped closure on Wednesday when Mrs Justice Nicola Davies ruled further consultation was necessary The Trust is currently contacting all families whose children were due to undergo heart treatment at the hospital to make alternative arrangements. Maggie Boyle, chief executive of the Trust, said: 'This will look at all aspects of congenital cardiac surgery for children undertaken at the unit in Leeds. 'We have taken the decision to temporarily pause children's congenital cardiac surgery and associated interventions while this review is conducted, a process we would aim to complete in around three weeks. We apologise to parents and families who will be affected during this time, and can assure them we always put the safety of our patients first. On Sunday, it was revealed an unnamed surgeon - only one of four in the department - had been suspended while 'aspects of his practise' were investigated. Hospital admitted the consultant was already under an earlier restriction from carrying out certain procedures. Last year, the Children's Heart Federation said it had 'major concerns' about standards of care at Leeds, claiming some babies had been sent home to die and called for an investigation following feedback from parents. The safety of children's heart surgery at Leeds was also raised two years ago with the Care Quality Commission health watchdog when a report found there had been 20 'excess' or unexpected deaths over eight years to 2008. The department is already under pressure after it emerged on Sunday that one of its senior surgeons has been banned from operating It sparked a change in the way mortality rates in hospitals are monitored, especially in cardiac care. But a number of independent experts have spoken in favour of closure, stressing there were 'serious issues' at the unit.