Many people think of heart problems as conditions that only affect adults. But the fact is, 1 out of every 100 babies in the United Arab Emirates is born with heart disease. That makes congenital heart disease the most common type of birth defect.

• Congenital heart disease (CHD) occurs during the early stages of a mother’s pregnancy, when her baby’s heart is forming

• Conditions classified as congenital heart disease include abnormalities in the heart’s structure or the heart’s electrical system

• Congenital heart disease, or a congenital heart defect, is a heart abnormality present at birth. The problem can affect:

  • the heart walls

  • the heart valves 

  • the blood vessels

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• Congenital heart disease is approximately 60 times more prevalent than childhood cancer

• CHD is the most common cause of birth defect-related infant death. 1

• Congenital heart disease affects approximately 500 babies born in the United Arab Emirates each year, making it the most common type of birth defect

• Genetic or chromosomal abnormalities cause some heart defects. Other risk factors include maternal smoking (during pregnancy), maternal obesity, maternal diabetes and maternal infections such as rubella

• CHD is a chronic condition that requires lifelong care. Surgery is not a cure.

• Children with heart defects are often at lifelong risk for other medical problems and cognitive or developmental complications

• Parents need for all kinds of support – informational, emotional, and instrumental – to be able to face the stress of caring for a child with CHD

• Caring for children with heart defects is a challenging and complex endeavor that causes emotional and financial stress for families, and requires many hospital resources

• There are very few resources allocated for the care of adult CHD patients in UAE there are only 4 cardiologists formally trained in the care of adult CHD patients, and only four surgeons with adult CHD expertise

• For the first time in history there are more adults than children living with CHD thanks to improved treatment and care.