"Pediatric heart disease" is a term used to describe several heart conditions in children. Most common pediatric heart disease is congenital in nature, meaning that children are born with some form of heart disease.

Spectrum of pediatric heart defects (congenital heart diseases)

There are different types of congenital heart defects:

  • Holes in the heart. Holes can be seen in the walls of heart or between major blood vessels (aorta and pulmonary artery) of the heart. Examples of these CHDs are: atrial sepal defect (ASD), ventricular septal defect (VSD), patent ductusarteriosus (PDA), coronary artery fistulas, ruptured sinus of Valsalvaetc.
  • Obstructed blood flow. When blood vessels or heart valves are stenosed, heart has to work hard for pumping of blood in the body. This can leads to thickening of heart walls or increase in size of chambers of the heart.  Examples are aortic or pulmonary stenosis etc.
  • Abnormal blood vessels. Can be in the form of abnormal location of blood vessels known as transposition of the great arteries TGA.
    Coarctation of the aorta occurs when main blood vessel supplying blood to the body is obstructed. Similarly total anomalous pulmonary venous connection (TAPVC) is a common congenital heart disease in which vessels form the lung attach to heart via an abnormal channel.
  • Heart valve abnormalities. Common examples are Ebstein's anomaly and pulmonary atresia.
  • An underdeveloped heart. Sometimes, a part of heart is poorly developed. E.g. hypoplastic left heart syndrome.