Diagnosis and management of the newborn with suspected congenital heart disease

Approximately one third of all children born with congenital heart defects become critically ill and either die or receive surgical treatment during the first year of life. Unrepaired critical congenital heart defects may result in progressive and irreversible secondary organ damage and may interfere with normal postnatal changes. Primary reparative surgery in the neonate offers the opportunity to decrease the mortality risk of the primary defect and also to prevent secondary damage to other organ systems. The ultimate outcome depends on timely and accurate diagnosis of the structural anomaly, the evaluation and resuscitation of secondary organ damage, effective lesion-specific preoperative management, and the appropriate timing and type of surgery.