When the heart or blood vessels near the heart do not develop normally before birth, a condition called congenital heart disease occurs (congenital means "existing at birth"). Heart defects are the most common type of birth defect, occurring in one out of every 120 live births. Most are detected at birth, but sometimes they do not present symptoms until adulthood.
Inova's highly specialized physicians offer care to newborns and children with congenital heart disease. Care can continue at Inova through adulthood since even when defects are repaired during infancy or childhood, people born with congenital heart problems need to be carefully followed as adults.
Because of the success of pediatric cardiac care teams over the past decades, there is now a population of adults alive today who previously may not have survived childhood. Inova's Congenital Heart Disease Program started in 1994 as one of the country's first programs to care for congenital heart disease patients. Today, our team of specialized physicians continues to care for patients in every stage of congenital heart disease. We offer the only program in Northern Virginia with continuity of care for infants, children, newly diagnosed adults and adults who were treated for congenital heart disease in childhood.
While most congenital heart defects are present at birth, around 10% of people with congenital heart disease don't have symptoms until adulthood. Even when defects are repaired during infancy or childhood, people born with congenital heart problems may continue to have cardiac issues requiring follow-up care by a cardiologist throughout their lives.
Inova's adult and pediatric specialists collaborate to offer this unique population a seamless continuity of care with our full breadth of cardiovascular services including cardiac imaging, cardiac surgery, advanced heart failure, arrhythmia management and pulmonary hypertension programs.
Areas of specialization include:
Pediatric congenital cardiac catheterization
Cardiac surgeons and interventional cardiologists perform advanced minimally invasive procedures to treat congenital heart defects. Some of these include repairing coarctation of the aorta, atrial septal defect closure, stenting and catheter-based pulmonary valve replacement.
Pediatric congenital electrophysiology
Electrophysiologists who are specialized in the management of children with congenital heart disease treat all types of arrhythmias. Inova Children’s Heart Center’s electrophysiology program offers expert care for pediatric heart rhythm disorders, including ablation, pacemakers, genetic screening and fetal arrhythmia monitoring, with a 97% success rate.
Maternal-fetal medicine
Inova's high-risk obstetric specialists manage women with congenital heart disease during pregnancy. The team also cares for women carrying babies with suspected congenital heart disease including specialized care for the mother and baby during labor and delivery, as well as postnatal care of the newborn.
Expert care and collaboration
In addition to caring for adults, we also have a separate children's heart surgery program at Inova, making us one of only a few hospitals in the country that cares for both populations.
Because we handle congenital heart disease in all stages, from birth to adulthood, we have a thorough understanding of the natural history of the disease and the techniques necessary to intervene with surgery at different points in time.
Physicians who are experienced with adult congenital heart disease include general cardiologists, cardiac surgeons, interventional cardiologists, electrophysiologists and vascular surgeons.
The only one in Northern Virginia
The Inova Children’s Heart Center was one of the first programs in the country designed to care for this special patient population. Today, it remains the only center of its kind in Northern Virginia.
Tailored to each patient
Treatment is based on the severity of the congenital heart disease. Some mild heart defects do not require any treatment. Others can be treated with medications, minimally invasive procedures or surgery.
Fortunately, an increasing number of congenital heart defects that once required surgery can now be treated with less invasive procedures. These procedures include:
- Atrial septal defect closure – This defect, abbreviated ASD, is a hole in the wall that separates the upper chambers of the heart. This causes blood to leak from one atrium to the other. During this procedure, a catheter (thin, flexible tube) is used to insert a small disk-like device, which is positioned across the defect and then allowed to expand, closing the hole.
- Coarctation of the aorta – The aorta is the major artery that carries blood away from the heart to the body. With this defect, the aorta is narrowed. In some instances, a catheter is guide to guide a balloon, which is inflated to widen the narrow area. A stent can be left in place to keep the area widened.
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Inova Children’s Heart Center