Adult Congenital Heart Disease: An Emerging Population

Advances in diagnostics, medical therapies, palliative, and corrective surgeries have resulted in a growing population of adults born with congenital heart disease. Surgical interventions have increased the life expectancies of patients with cardiac defects and enabled survival of increasing numbers of patients with disorders that were frequently fatal in childhood. As a result, the new cardiac subspecialty of adult congenital heart disease has emerged. Care of this patient population requires an understanding not only of the underlying cardiac anomalies but also of the residual effects of surgical repairs and the importance of ongoing lifetime surveillance to reduce the risk of both short- and long-term complications. Adults with congenital heart disease should also possess an understanding of the importance of lifelong care to monitor and manage the effects of their defect, and, as they age, should understand how behavior, lifestyle choices, and/or inherited characteristics may lead to acquired diseases and impact non-cardiac healthcare issues.