Lifelong Care for Complex Congenital Heart Defects
Adults with complex congenital heart disease require lifelong expert surveillance to avoid complications such as arrhythmia, heart failure, infection, stroke or premature death. Of the approximately 600,000 American adults with complex congenital heart disease, however, fewer than 50,000 receive follow-up care from a cardiologist who is specially trained to care for them and their unique issues.
The Heart Institute’s Adolescent and Adult Congenital Heart Disease Program provides a new model to ensure adolescents and adults with congenital heart defects receive appropriate care, including:
- Ongoing, lifelong surveillance for patients with the most complex congenital heart defects in order to prevent complications
- Tailored education for each patient’s condition to include family planning and pregnancy; exercise; symptom identification; infection prevention; genetic counseling
- Transition plan for patients around age 18 to our high-quality program that will follow them throughout adulthood
- Delivery of ambulatory care within the walls of Cincinnati Children’s
