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Pattern of congenital heart disease among Egyptian children: a 3-year retrospective study
Marwa Moustapha Al-Fahham1,2, Yasmin Abdelrazek Ali3
1Pediatric Department, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt. m_alfahham5m@hotmail.com.
Insights
Congenital heart disease (CHD) in Egyptian children shows no sex predilection and is often diagnosed in infancy, with murmurs frequently leading to discovery. Many risk factors, including maternal illnesses and consanguinity, are prevalent.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Cardiology
- Medical Genetics
Background:
- Congenital heart disease (CHD) is a significant birth defect with varying characteristics globally.
- Understanding demographic and risk factor distribution is crucial for targeted interventions in specific populations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the demographics, perinatal risks, types, age, and presentation of CHD in Egyptian children.
- To identify common CHD types and associated anomalies in the Egyptian pediatric population.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of medical records for 1005 Egyptian children diagnosed with CHD.
- Data collection included patient demographics, perinatal factors, CHD type, age at diagnosis, and clinical presentation.
Main Results:
- Acyanotic CHD (79.2%) was most common, with isolated ventricular septal defect being the most frequent lesion. Diagnosis occurred predominantly within the first year of life.
- Common presentations included accidental murmur discovery (35%) and heart failure (44%). High rates of maternal illnesses (54%), consanguinity (44.6%), and prematurity (19.3%) were noted.
- Down syndrome was the most frequent chromosomal anomaly, often associated with atrioventricular septal defects.
Conclusions:
- CHD in Egyptian children lacks sex predilection and is typically diagnosed in early infancy.
- Numerous risk factors, including maternal health issues and genetic predispositions like Down syndrome, are associated with CHD in this population.
- A national birth registry is recommended for improved surveillance and prevention of congenital anomalies.
Background:
Congenital heart disease (CHD) is a multifactorial birth defect which has variable demographic characteristics among children in different geographical areas. This study aimed to detect the distribution of demographic data, perinatal risk factors, types, age, and mode of presentation of CHD among Egyptian children.
Results:
The medical records of 1005 patients were included. They were 545 males (54%) and 462 females (46%) with a ratio of 1.2:1. Acyanotic CHD was encountered in 79.2%. Isolated ventricular septal defect and tetralogy of Fallot were the most common acyanotic and cyanotic lesions, respectively. The majority was diagnosed within the first year of life (86.7%) and was born to young mothers (91.3%). The accidental discovery of a murmur was the most frequent presentation (35%). Heart failure was detected in 44%, audible murmurs in 74.4%, maternal illnesses in 54%, consanguinity in 44.6%, prematurity in 19.3%, assisted reproduction in 11.7%, family history of CHD in 9.2%, abortions in 7.1%, and extracardiac anomalies in 3.6% of the studied population. Down syndrome (DS) was the most commonly occurring chromosomal anomaly, and the atrioventricular septal defect was the most characteristic cardiac lesion found among them.
Conclusions:
There is no sex predilection among Egyptian children with CHD. Most of the cases are diagnosed in early infancy. Accidental discovery of a murmur is the most common mode of presentation. A variety of predisposing risk factors are abundant in the Egyptian population. DS is the most common chromosomal anomaly linked to CHD. Establishment of a national medical birth registry containing all information about all births in Egypt is needed for adequate surveillance and monitoring of perinatal health problems and congenital birth defects so that preventive measures can be early implemented. Proper and detailed data collection should be fulfilled in the medical records of every single patient.
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