Cardiometabolic Risk Factors in Mexican Adults With Congenital Heart Disease

In recent decades, adults living with congenital heart disease (ACHD) have improved their survival, thus increasing their predisposition to the onset of cardiometabolic risk factors and chronic health conditions.

The purpose of this study was to describe cardiometabolic risk profiles in the ACHD population and their relationship to congenital heart disease (CHD) lesion complexity.

We performed a cross-sectional study from ACHD in a third-tier referral center in Mexico City. The association between cardiometabolic risk factors and CHD complexity was estimated using logistic regression models.

Our study cohort included 1,171 ACHD patients (median age: 31 [IQR: 23.2-42.7] years, male 63.6%). Cardiac diagnosis was classified as mild (44.9%), moderate (37.8%), and severe (17.2%) CHD complexity. Low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (55%) was the most common cardiometabolic risk factor; followed by insulin resistance (54.5%) and prediabetes (52.4%). Patients with mild and moderate CHD had a higher prevalence of obesity and metabolic syndrome, while patients with severe CHD had a higher prevalence of hyperuricemia and subclinical hypothyroidism. In the logistic regression analysis, the severity of CHD was associated with higher odds of hyperuricemia (moderate CHD, OR: 1.87; 95% CI: 1.20-2.93; P = 0.010; severe CHD, OR: 2.75; 95% CI: 1.64-4.62; P < 0.001) and lower risks of metabolic syndrome (OR: 0.61; 95% CI: 0.41-0.91; P = 0.010), prediabetes (OR: 0.58; 95% CI: 0.42-0.81; P < 0.001), and arterial hypertension (OR: 0.49; 95% CI: 0.33-0.74; P < 0.001) compared with mild CHD complexity.

We observed high rates of cardiometabolic risk factors in Mexican ACHD patients and these risk profiles varied by CHD lesion complexity. These results highlight the need for ongoing metabolic health surveillance in the ACHD population.