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Published on: March 10, 2020
Prevalence of congenital heart defects in metropolitan Atlanta, 1998-2005
Mark D Reller1, Matthew J Strickland, Tiffany Riehle-Colarusso
1Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR, USA.
Insights
Congenital heart defects (CHD) affect approximately 81.4 per 10,000 births, with common types including ventricular and atrial septal defects. This study provides current prevalence estimates for various CHD subtypes.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Pediatrics
- Public Health
Background:
- Congenital heart defects (CHD) represent a significant global health concern.
- Accurate prevalence data is crucial for resource allocation and understanding disease burden.
Purpose of the Study:
- To establish precise prevalence rates for congenital heart defects (CHD) utilizing contemporary diagnostic methods.
- To identify the most frequent subtypes of CHD and their demographic associations.
Main Methods:
- Data was sourced from the Metropolitan Atlanta Congenital Defects Program (MACDP) surveillance system.
- Infants born between 1998 and 2005 with CHD were identified, excluding physiologic shunts.
- Infant and maternal characteristics were compared with the general birth cohort.
Main Results:
- An overall CHD prevalence of 81.4 per 10,000 births was observed from 398,140 births (1998-2005).
- Muscular ventricular septal defect (27.5/10,000), perimembranous ventricular septal defect (10.6/10,000), and secundum atrial septal defect (10.3/10,000) were most common.
- Tetralogy of Fallot (4.7/10,000) was the most prevalent cyanotic CHD, followed by transposition of the great arteries (2.3/10,000).
- Associations were noted between common CHD, advanced maternal age, multiple gestations, and sex.
Conclusions:
- This research offers updated prevalence figures for diverse CHD subtypes based on standardized classification.
- These findings are valuable for analyzing geographic, temporal, and demographic variations in CHD occurrence.
Objective:
To determine an accurate estimate of the prevalence of congenital heart defects (CHD) using current standard diagnostic modalities.
Study Design:
We obtained data on infants with CHD delivered during 1998 to 2005 identified by the Metropolitan Atlanta Congenital Defects Program, an active, population-based, birth defects surveillance system. Physiologic shunts in infancy and shunts associated with prematurity were excluded. Selected infant and maternal characteristics of the cases were compared with those of the overall birth cohort.
Results:
From 1998 to 2005 there were 398 140 births, of which 3240 infants had CHD, for an overall prevalence of 81.4/10 000 births. The most common CHD were muscular ventricular septal defect, perimembranous ventricular septal defect, and secundum atrial septal defect, with prevalence of 27.5, 10.6, and 10.3/10 000 births, respectively. The prevalence of tetralogy of Fallot, the most common cyanotic CHD, was twice that of transposition of the great arteries (4.7 vs 2.3/10 000 births). Many common CHD were associated with older maternal age and multiple-gestation pregnancy; several were found to vary by sex.
Conclusions:
This study, using a standardized cardiac nomenclature and classification, provides current prevalence estimates of the various CHD subtypes. These estimates can be used to assess variations in prevalence across populations, time, or space.
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