Abstract:
Objective: To evaluate retrospectively the relative frequencies, risk factors and diagnostic clues of congenital heart disease in newborns at our neonatal intensive care unit.
Materials and Methods: Among 845 cases who were admitted to the ADU Neonatal Intensive Care Unit between December 2000 - August 2006, fiftysix newborns with congenital heart disease were evaluated retrospectively.
Results: The prevalence of congenital heart disease was 6.6%. The most frequent (87.5%) reason for cardiology consultation was cardiac murmur. The relative percentage of acyanotic and cyanotic heart defects was 70% vs 30%. The most frequent acyanotic and cyanotic defects were ventricular septal defect and tetralogy of Fallot with a prevalence of 19.7% and 10.7%, respectively. Maternal diabetes mellitus, genetic syndrome and congenital rubella syndrome were observed in 14.3%, 8.9%, 1.8% of cases, respectively.
Conclusion: The prevalence of congenital heart disease in newborns at the neonatal intensive care unit is higher than that in all live births. The most frequent diagnostic clue is cardiac murmur. In this study, the most frequently observed risk factors were maternal diabetes mellitus and genetic syndrome.
