The word "congenital" means "present at birth". Congenital heart disease refers to a problem with the heart's structure and function due to abnormal heart development before birth. This may be due to genetic factors, but not necessarily.
About 1% of infants (at least in the USA) are born with one or more heart or circulatory problems.
According to the Mayo Clinic, there are more than 35 common congenital heart defects, falling mainly into these categories:
- Holes in the heart
- Obstructed blood flow
- Abnormal blood vessels
- Heart valve abnormalities
- A combination of defects
Medline Plus (National Library of Medicine and National Institutes of Health)
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