Risk in 2010 to 2012 reduced by almost 40 percent compared with 1992 to 1994
THURSDAY, June 2, 2016 (HealthDay News) — For infants diagnosed with Down syndrome there has been a reduction in the risk of complex congenital heart defects, according to a study published online June 1 in Pediatrics.
Sofie Bergström, from the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, and colleagues conducted a population-based cohort study based on national health registers, including 2,588 infants with Down Syndrome. They calculated the risk ratios for congenital heart defects per three-year period, after adjustment for multiple factors.
The researchers found that 54 percent of infants with Down syndrome were diagnosed with any congenital heart defect. There was no correlation for year of birth with risk of any congenital heart defect; however, over time there was a decrease in the risk of complex congenital heart defects. The risk in 2010 to 2012 was reduced compared with 1992 to 1994 (adjusted risk ratio, 0.62). During latter years there were significant increases in the risks for isolated ventricular septal defect (VSD) or atrial septal defect. The three most common diagnoses were atrioventricular septal defect (42 percent), VSD (22 percent), and atrial septal defect (16 percent). In 1992 to 1994, atrioventricular septal defect was more common than VSD; in 2010 to 2012 they were equally common.
“Complex congenital heart defects have become less common in infants diagnosed with Down syndrome,” the authors write.
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