ADULT CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE PROGRAM

The Adult Congenital Heart Disease Program at the Massachusetts General Hospital Heart Center offers personalized, lifelong care for adult patients with congenital heart disease, a condition that occurs when the heart or related blood vessels do not develop properly before or at birth. Clinicians at the Adult Congenital Heart Disease Program provide personalized, lifelong care for adolescent and adult patients with the entire spectrum of congenital heart disease, including, but not limited to: Aortic valve stenosis, Atrial septal defect, Bicuspid aortic valve, Coarctation of the aorta, Complex congenital heart disease, Congenital coronary anomalies, Dextrocardia, Ebstein’s Anomaly, Eisenmenger Syndrome, Fontan circulation, Patent ductus arteriosus, Pulmonic stenosis, Tetralogy of Fallot, Transposition of the great arteries, Ventricular septal defect.

Patients and their families are guided through every aspect of management, from the initial encounter and review of prior history through diagnostic and interventional procedures, while emphasizing continuity of care and long-term follow up. Our physicians are focused exclusively on treating congenital heart disease in adults and work with specialists from multiple clinical disciplines to provide care from many different perspectives, including: Cardiac genetics, Cardiac imaging, Cardiac and thoracic surgery, Electrophysiology, Heart failure and transplantation, Hematology, Interventional cardiology, Neurology, Obstetrics and gynecology, Pulmonary care. Our specialists care for adolescents and adults with congenital heart disease and value open and ongoing communication with referring pediatricians, internists and primary cardiologists. We also emphasize patient education and self advocacy to help patients transition from pediatric, through adolescent to adult care. Depending on the patient, we may use one or more of these diagnostic techniques to examine the heart’s anatomy and function: Cardiac MRI, Cardiac CT; Echocardiography, including transephageal, transthoracic and 3D; CT guidance during electrophysiologic procedures; Diagnostic and interventional cardiac catheterization. Both outpatient and inpatient care are closely supervised by the same dedicated physicians in the personalized manner that has been the tradition and style of excellence that characterizes Mass General. Our goal is to repair and manage congenital heart conditions so that patients live full, healthy lives. Our specialists take a holistic approach to care and are available to: Answer your questions. Patients with congenital heart disease often have questions relating to work, education, sports participation, marriage, pregnancy, childrearing, and whether their condition affects lifestyle decisions. Guide patients through lifestyle changes. Preventive care is central to the treatment process.