This program serves adult patients who were born with heart malformations broadly called "congenital heart disease". It is the goal of the adult congenital heart disease program to assure that patients who have survived childhood with congenital heart disease continue to have excellent medical care. As trained pediatric cardiologists, we have an intimate understanding of the adult with congenital heart disease and provide superior care to this population over adult trained cardiologists.

Our understanding of congenital heart disease and the various changing approaches for surgical repair allows us to anticipate medical issues in the care of the unique adult patient. Early identification of problems allows for the prevention or delay of serious complications. There is no age limit to the population we serve.

Many adults with congenital heart disease have had corrective or palliative (temporary repair) surgery in childhood, and some have never had surgical intervention. All are in need of medical surveillance and care by a specialist that is knowledgeable in congenital heart disease.  For the past 30 years we have managed patients with all types of congenital heart disease in the outpatient clinic as well as in the surgical suite. We are actively involved with the surgical team in the preoperative evaluation, intraoperative evaluation, and postoperative care of our patients.

Many surgical repairs of patients with congenital heart disease in the past leave significant residual problems that must be addressed to ensure a good long-term outcome.  For example, in the past we believed that surgical correction of Tetrology of Fallot would be a life-long fix. We now know that this was only a palliation and nearly all patients will require placement of a new pulmonary valve to prevent eventual right heart failure.  Close and diligent follow-up is needed to optimize the timing of repoerations to prevent intractable heart failure.  Some past surgical procedures have been abandoned for newer techniques with improved survival (e.g. the Mustard procedure was abandoned for the arterial switch operation and the classic Fontan was abandoned for a staged extra-cardiac Fontan). 

Physicians caring for this population must have a strong understanding of the older techniques and monitor for known complications and immediately provide treatment. We also provide services for patients with congenital heart defects during the childbearing years. It is important for young women with heart malformations to understand the effects of pregnancy on their long-term cardiac well being. These young women also have a slightly increased risk of passing their congenital heart defect off to their children. Along with a geneticist, we aid in the counseling of fetal cardiac malformations. We also assist obstetricians and perinatologists in managing the patient with cardiac conditions throughout pregnancy and at the time of delivery.