Mental Health in Children with Congenital Heart Disease
Research By: Kimberley Miles, MD | Nadine Kasparian, PhD, MAPS
Post Date: September 18, 2023 | Publish Date: Sept. 18, 2023
Heart Institute: Cardiology | Top Scientific Achievement
Around 1.35 million infants are born with congenital heart disease (CHD) each year worldwide. That’s about 10 children born with CHD every five minutes. Many of these children will need mental health support as they grow up, but only some will receive it.
The scale of the need, and details about which groups of children with CHD most often need mental health care, were outlined in an eye-opening study led by first author Kimberley Miles, MD, and senior co-author Nadine Kasparian, PhD, both members of the Heart Institute at Cincinnati Children’s.
“Previous studies have found that only a fraction of children with CHD received mental health treatment for known ADHD or anxiety,” Miles says. “Our findings further demonstrate an important opportunity for pediatricians, mental health professionals and cardiologists to collaborate to improve mental health outcomes among these patients.”
In a study based on population-wide data from Denmark, the research team reported that more than 35% of the 16,473 children born with CHD from 1996 to 2017 were diagnosed with at least one mental health condition. Incidence rates were highest for severe stress reactions, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, intellectual disability, and autism spectrum disorder. Boys and children with severe or single-ventricle CHD demonstrated higher incidence rates of mental health conditions relative to girls and children with mild or moderate CHD, respectively.
“Our findings stress the importance of prevention, early identification and intervention approaches for neurodevelopmental and mental health conditions as part of congenital heart care,” Kasparian says.
Looking ahead, the research team plans to explore more clinical, socioeconomic and family-related factors associated with mental health conditions in CHD.
Co-authors included experts with the University of Texas Southwestern and Aarhus University, Denmark.
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| Original title: | Mental Health Conditions Among Children and Adolescents With Congenital Heart Disease: A Danish Population-Based Cohort Study |
| Published in: | Circulation |
| Publish date: | Sept. 18, 2023 |
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In the Kasparian Lab, we are interested in how early life experiences influence emotional, neurobiological and cognitive development throughout childhood, adolescence and adulthood.
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The Research Horizons blog features news and insights about the latest discoveries and innovations developed by the scientists of Cincinnati Children's. This blog does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
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