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Undiagnosed Congenital Heart Defects as a Cause of Sudden, Unexpected Death in Children
Author(s) -
Serinelli Serenella,
Arunkumar Ponni,
White Steven
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
journal of forensic sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.715
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1556-4029
pISSN - 0022-1198
DOI - 10.1111/1556-4029.13779
Subject(s) - medicine , autopsy , pediatrics , sudden death , cause of death , medical examiner , atrioventricular septal defect , sudden cardiac death , retrospective cohort study , heart disease , surgery , cardiology , poison control , injury prevention , medical emergency , disease
Despite advances in the diagnosis and treatment of congenital heart defects ( CHD s), these defects are still an important cause of sudden, unexpected death in young children. This retrospective study identified 64 cases of CHD s presenting as a cause of sudden, unexpected death in a busy, urban Medical Examiner's Office pediatric population between 2006 and 2016. The majority of cases (52 of 64, 81%) were infants. Interestingly, 52% of cases were undiagnosed prior to autopsy. Ventricular septal defects and atrioventricular septal defects were the most common simple (14%) and complex (17%) malformations observed, respectively. In many cases, there were coexistent simple and/or complex defects. Most of the cases diagnosed with CHD prior to autopsy (48%) had undergone some type of surgical repair. This study highlights the importance of considering undiagnosed CHD s as a cause of sudden, unexpected death, particularly in young children.