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Definition
By Mayo Clinic staffIf your child has been diagnosed with a congenital heart defect, it means he or she was born with a problem in the heart's structure. The news that your child has a congenital heart defect probably made you anxious and worried about your child's immediate and long-term health. But, knowing about your child's congenital heart defect can help you understand his or her condition and what you can expect in the coming months and years.
Some congenital heart defects are simple and don't need treatment. For example, a small hole between heart chambers that closes on its own. Other congenital heart defects in children are more complex and may require several surgeries performed over a period of several years.
- Congenital heart defects. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/chd/chd_all.html. Accessed Aug. 18, 2010.
- Fulton DR. Congenital heart disease in children and adolescents. In: Fuster V, et al. Hurst's The Heart. 12th ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.; 2008. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=3077940&searchStr=congenital+heart+disease#3077940. Accessed Aug. 18, 2010.
- Bernstein D. Cardiac development. In: Kliegman RM, et al. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 18th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/215591989-8/0/1608/989.html?tocnode=54482815&fromURL=989.html#4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-2450-7..X5001-4--part19_8078. Accessed Aug. 20, 2010.
- Congenital heart defects. March of Dimes. http://www.pregnancynewborn.com/printableArticles/14332_1212.asp. Accessed Aug. 18, 2010.
- Congenital cardiovascular defects. American Heart Association. http://www.americanheart.org/print_presenter.jhtml?identifier=4565. Accessed Aug. 18, 2010.
- Hoecker J (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Aug. 23, 2010.
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