International Journal of Cardiovascular Sciences. 21/maio/2020;33(3):206-7.

Challenge in the Treatment of Children with Congenital Heart Disease: Reducing Waiting Time for Cardiac Surgery

Ana Flavia Malheiros Torbey , Aurea Grippa

DOI: 10.36660/ijcs.20190013

Congenital heart disease is an important cause of mortality in the neonatal period. in Brazil, according to data from DATASUS from the period between 2012 and 2016, congenital heart disease is the third most common malformation in children younger than 28 days, with an estimated incidence of 1.3-1.7% and high mortality rate in this age range. They are also the third main cause of global mortality in the first 30 days of life, the main cause among congenital abnormalities. Therefore, 28,000 new cases per year are expected in Brazil. ^,

The outcomes of congenital heart disease can be grouped into spontaneous resolution of minor lesions, such as some interatrial or interventricular communications or persistent arterial duct; conditions that require repair procedures (interventional catheterizations or surgeries); and those cases that only palliative procedures can be performed due to anatomical and physiological features. Thus, approximately 20% of cases do not require surgery and resolve spontaneously, and nearly half of the other 80% (22,400 children) will require cardiac surgery in the first year of life. ^,

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