• In the UK there are about 4,600 babies born with congenital heart disease each year. • The progn...
• In the UK there are about 4,600 babies born with congenital heart disease each year.
• The prognosis for babies born with congenital heart disease has improved dramatically over the past 30 years.
• At least three-quarters of babies with congenital heart disease are predicted to survive adulthood.
• The prognosis for babies born with congenital heart disease varies widely depending on the complexity of the congenital defect. Survival rates in a number of simple conditions are close to 100%.
• Treatment for congenital heart disease has evolved substantially over the last four decades, with the development of many new surgical and cardiac catheterisation techniques.
• Around 3,100 operations and 725 interventional cardiac catheterisations are performed each year on babies and children with congenital heart disease.
• Mortality from operations performed on children with congenital heart disease has more than halved since the late 1970s.
• There are a number of medical complications associated with congenital heart disease. Most people with congenital heart disease have a life-long risk of infective endocarditis even after repair. Those with more severe malformations, particularly those involving cyanosis (a chronic shortage of oxygen in the blood) are at highest risk of a range of complications, including kidney dysfunction and blood deficiencies.
• Currently in the UK there are approximately 150,000 people aged 16 and over living with congenital heart disease. Of these, around 11,500 have the more complex forms of the disease, which requires lifelong care.
• It is estimated that the number of adults with congenital heart disease in the UK will grow 25% by 2010.
• As a result, over the next ten years there will be a significant increase in the demand for adult congenital heart disease (GUCH) services in the UK.
• In the future, over 1,600 extra adults each year will require specialist GUCH services. It is estimated that around 25% more consultant congenital cardiologists and surgeons are needed.
• Quality of life in adults with simple congenital heart disease is similar to that found in adults in the general population in all areas of life, except physical functioning and general health perception, where it is lower.
• However, the presence of cyanosis in adults with congenital heart disease is associated with a more severe and more generalised reduction in quality of life.
Source: The British Heart Foundation - www.heartstats.org, congenital heart disease statistics 2003.
