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Congenital heart disease infant death rates decrease as gestational age advances from 34 to 40 weeks

James F Cnota1, Resmi Gupta, Erik C Michelfelder

  • 1The Heart Institute, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA. james.cnota@cchmc.org

The Journal of Pediatrics
|June 17, 2011
PubMed

Insights

Congenital heart disease infant mortality decreases as gestational age increases. Full-term infants (34-40 weeks) show lower death rates, suggesting caution with early elective deliveries.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatal Health
  • Perinatal Mortality
  • Congenital Heart Disease Epidemiology

Background:

  • Congenital heart disease (CHD) is a significant cause of infant mortality.
  • Understanding the impact of gestational age on CHD outcomes is crucial for clinical practice.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To analyze CHD death rates in infants born between 34 and 40 weeks gestation.
  • To determine the relationship between gestational age and CHD infant death rates.
  • To compare CHD death rates across 1- and 2-week gestational age intervals.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized national linked birth/infant death cohort datasets (2000-2003).
  • Identified CHD deaths using ICD-10 codes.
  • Calculated proportional death rates and analyzed the relationship with gestational age.

Main Results:

  • Analyzed 14.9 million records; 4736 infants (0.04%) born 34-40 weeks had CHD deaths.
  • Found a significant negative linear relationship (R²=0.97) between CHD death rate and gestational age.
  • Two-week gestational age intervals showed statistically significant differences in CHD death rates.

Conclusions:

  • CHD infant death rates decline as gestational age approaches 40 weeks.
  • Results advise against elective delivery solely for prenatally diagnosed CHD.
  • Gestational age is a critical factor influencing CHD infant mortality.
Abstract

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