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Congenital Heart Defects and Receipt of Special Education Services
Tiffany Riehle-Colarusso1, Andrew Autry2, Hilda Razzaghi2
1Division of Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia; tja4@cdc.gov.
Insights
Children with congenital heart defects (CHDs) are 50% more likely to receive special education services. Early developmental screening is crucial for these children to ensure they get necessary support.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Cardiology
- Developmental Pediatrics
- Special Education
Background:
- Investigated the prevalence of special education services in children with congenital heart defects (CHDs).
- Compared service receipt in children with CHDs to those without birth defects.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if children with CHDs have a higher likelihood of receiving special education services.
- To identify specific categories of special education services more prevalent in children with CHDs.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a population-based surveillance program to identify 3,744 children with CHDs born between 1982-2004 in Atlanta.
- Linked birth records of children with CHDs and 860,715 children without birth defects to special education files (1992-2012).
- Excluded children with non-cardiac defects or genetic syndromes; classified CHDs by criticality.
Main Results:
- Children with CHDs were 50% more likely to receive special education services overall (aPRR=1.5).
- Higher prevalence observed for intellectual disability (aPRR=3.8), sensory impairment (aPRR=3.0), other health impairment (aPRR=2.8), developmental delay (aPRR=1.9), and specific learning disability (aPRR=1.4).
- Excess prevalence of services generally did not differ based on the criticality of CHDs.
Conclusions:
- Children with CHDs more frequently receive special education services compared to peers without birth defects.
- Findings underscore the necessity of special education support for children with CHDs.
- Emphasizes the importance of developmental screening for all children diagnosed with CHDs.
Background:
We investigated the prevalence of receipt of special education services among children with congenital heart defects (CHDs) compared with children without birth defects.
Methods:
Children born from 1982 to 2004 in metropolitan Atlanta with CHDs (n = 3744) were identified from a population-based birth defect surveillance program; children without birth defects (n = 860 715) were identified from birth certificates. Cohorts were linked to special education files for the 1992-2012 school years to identify special education services. Children with noncardiac defects or genetic syndromes were excluded; children with CHDs were classified by presence or absence of critical CHDs (ie, CHDs requiring intervention by age one year). We evaluated the prevalence of receipt of special education services and prevalence rate ratios using children without birth defects as a reference.
Results:
Compared with children without birth defects, children with CHDs were 50% more likely to receive special education services overall (adjusted prevalence rate ratio [aPRR] = 1.5; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.4-1.7). Specifically, they had higher prevalence of several special education categories including: intellectual disability (aPRR = 3.8; 95% CI: 2.8-5.1), sensory impairment (aPRR = 3.0; 95% CI: 1.8-5.0), other health impairment (aPRR = 2.8; 95% CI: 2.2-3.5), significant developmental delay (aPRR = 1.9; 95% CI: 1.3-2.8), and specific learning disability (aPRR = 1.4; 95% CI: 1.1-1.7). For most special education services, the excess prevalence did not vary by presence of critical CHDs.
Conclusions:
Children with CHDs received special education services more often than children without birth defects. These findings highlight the need for special education services and the importance of developmental screening for all children with CHDs.
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