Adults with congenital heart disease present challenges, rewards for cardiologists

This article was published in Cardiology Today in October, 2014. To read the full article please click HERE. 

Many factors are behind the progress observed thus far. Some of the drivers include advances in cardiac surgery and interventional techniques; the advent of the ICU; developments in the care of vascular disease and arrhythmia disorders; progress in imaging; and improvement in the education of medical caregivers.

Physicians and patients in the United States have seen outstanding progress in the treatment and care of congenital heart disease during the past 50 years. If a child was born with congenital heart disease in the 1960s, the chance of survival to adulthood was estimated to be less than 20%. If a child is born with congenital heart disease today, the chance of survival to adulthood is estimated to be higher than 90%....