Congenital Heart Disease

Abstract

Congenital heart disease (CHD) is a problem in the structure of the heart that is present at birth. CHD is still the most common inborn defect with an approximate prevalence at birth of 5–11 per 1000 live births and incidence of 1%. The aim of this chapter is to give both a general overview on CHD and to address just a few specific issues for each type of structural disease. Congenital cardiac malformations may be classified in different ways; to highlight the underlying anatomy and pathophysiology, the diseases could be grouped as follows: (a) CHD with shunt between systemic and pulmonary circulation, (b) left heart CHD, (c) right heart CHD, (d) CHD with anomalous origin of great arteries, and (e) miscellanea.