Sexual Health and Well-Being in Adults With Congenital Heart Disease: A International Society of Adult Congenital Heart Disease Statement.

As health care outcomes improve the priority for those living with adult congenital heart disease have changed to a more holistic focus on quality of life and well-being. Although health care has embraced this, there are still areas where there is a deficit in advice, allyship, and advocacy. One of these deficits is in the area of sexual health and well-being.

Considerations for Gender-Affirming Hormonal and Surgical Care Among Transgender and Gender Diverse Adolescents and Adults With Congenital Heart Disease.

Background: Transgender and gender diverse (TGD) individuals and long-term survivors with adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) are both growing populations with specialized needs. No studies assess temporal trends or evaluate the care of TGD individuals with ACHD.

Methods And Results: Meetings between congenital cardiology and gender-affirming care specialists identified unique considerations in TGD individuals with ACHD.

Pilot Project: Heart Chargers-A Successful Model for a Home-Based Physical Activity Program Utilizing Telemedicine for Fontan Patients.

Fontan patients have decreased exercise capacity which further declines throughout adolescence. A positive exercise capacity trajectory in children predicts better adult Fontan outcomes. Hospital-based physical activity programs improve exercise capacity and attenuate the age-expected decline in Fontan patients.

Submaximal Exercise Response is Associated with Future Hypertension in Patients with Coarctation of the Aorta.

Hypertension (HTN) is common in patients with a history of coarctation of the aorta (CoA) and remains underrecognized and undertreated. Studies in the non-coarctation otherwise healthy adult population have correlated an exaggerated blood pressure response during mild to moderate exercise with subsequent diagnosis of HTN. The goal of this study was to determine if blood pressure response to submaximal exercise in normotensive CoA patients correlated with development of HTN.

Surgical management and outcomes of endocarditis in adolescents and adults with congenital heart disease.

Background: Adolescents and adults with CHD have increased risk for IE because of anatomic anomalies and burden of intracardiac prosthetic material. There are significant challenges in determining primary surgical or medical management along with limited guidelines to determine management.

Methods: A retrospective review was performed at both the University of Colorado Hospital and Children's Hospital Colorado of patients 12 years of age and older with CHD who were treated for IE between 2009 and 2019.

The Impact of and Barriers to Cardiac Rehabilitation Following Cardiac Surgery in the Adult With Congenital Heart Disease.

Introduction: There is a paucity of literature evaluating the impact of and barriers to participation in cardiac rehabilitation (CR) in the adult congenital heart disease population. The aims of this study were to evaluate the impact of CR on physical activity and health-related quality of life, as well as to evaluate the barriers to participation in CR in a post-operative adult congenital heart disease population.

Methods: Patients ≥18 yr of age seen in the Wisconsin Adult Congenital Heart Disease Program and post-open sternotomy surgery from 2010-2015 were eligible for inclusion.

Impact of a paediatric cardiac rehabilitation programme upon patient quality of life.

Introduction: Cardiac rehabilitation programmes for paediatric patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) have been shown to promote emotional and physical health without any associated adverse events. While prior studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of these types of interventions, there has been limited research into how the inclusion of psychological interventions as part of the programme impacts parent-reported and patient-reported quality of life.

Materials And Methods: Patients between the ages of 7 and 24 years with CHD completed a cardiac rehabilitation programme that followed a flexible structure of four in person-visits with various multidisciplinary team members, including paediatric psychologists.

Important Considerations in Pediatric Heart Failure.

Purpose Of Review: The goal of this paper is to provide an overview of contemporary knowledge specific to the causes, management, and outcome of heart failure in children.

Recent Findings: While recently there have been subtle improvements in heart failure outcomes in children, these improvements lag significantly behind that of adults. There is a growing body of literature suggesting that pediatric heart failure is a unique disease process with age- and disease-specific myocardial adaptations.

Outcomes in Adult Congenital Heart Disease: Neurocognitive Issues and Transition of Care.

There is a growing population of patients living with congenital heart disease (CHD), now with more adults living with CHD than children. Adults with CHD have unique health care needs, requiring a thoughtful approach to cardiac, neurocognitive, mental, and physical health issues. They have increased risk of anxiety, depression, pragmatic language impairment, limited social cognition, worse educational attainment and unemployment, and delayed progression into independent adulthood.

Porcine Small Intestinal Submucosa May Be a Suitable Material for Norwood Arch Reconstruction.

Background: Norwood palliation typically requires patch augmentation of the ascending aorta and aortic arch. Patients having undergone Norwood palliation are at risk of recurrent arch obstruction, the risk of which may be affected by the type of patch material used at the time of Norwood palliation. We sought to determine the freedom from neoaortic arch reintervention and overall survival in patients who underwent Norwood palliation utilizing porcine small intestinal submucosa (PSIS) as the patch material.

Anatomic Repair of Congenitally Corrected Transposition of the Great Arteries: Single-Center Intermediate-Term Experience.

We present our experience for patients who have undergone an anatomic repair (AR) for congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries (CCTGA) at the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin. A retrospective chart review of patients who underwent AR for CCTGA from 2001 to 2015 was performed. The cohort consisted of 15 patients (74% male).

Can a Home-based Cardiac Physical Activity Program Improve the Physical Function Quality of Life in Children with Fontan Circulation?

Objective: Patients after Fontan operation for complex congenital heart disease (CHD) have decreased exercise capacity and report reduced health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Studies suggest hospital-based cardiac physical activity programs can improve HRQOL and exercise capacity in patients with CHD; however, these programs have variable adherence rates. The impact of a home-based cardiac physical activity program in Fontan survivors is unclear.

The Externally Supported Ross Operation: Early Outcomes and Intermediate Follow-Up.

Background: The externally supported Ross (supported Ross), consisting of a Dacron (DuPont, Wilmington, DE) graft to support the neoaortic root, has been used in adolescent and adult patients to prevent neoaortic dilatation. Outcomes after the supported Ross technique were compared with the Ross procedure using the standard aortic root replacement technique (standard Ross).

Methods: This was a retrospective analysis of 36 adolescent and young adult patients who underwent the Ross procedure between 1992 and 2013.