Recommendations Developed for Managing Adults With Congenital Heart Disease

MONDAY, Dec. 22, 2025 (HealthDay News) -- In clinical practice guidelines issued by the American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association and published online Dec. 18 in both the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and Circulation, recommendations are presented for the management of adults with congenital heart disease (ACHD).Michelle Gurvitz, M.D., from Harvard Medical School in Boston, and colleagues conducted a systematic literature review and developed recommendations to guide clinicians on the evaluation and treatment of adult patients with congenital heart disease.The authors note that routine care at ACHD centers, and in collaboration with ACHD cardiologists, is beneficial for ACHD. For complex-care decision-making, multidisciplinary teams are useful. Having an ACHD cardiologist involved is recommended for care of patients with anatomic or physiologically moderate or complex ACHD who undergo cardiac or noncardiac procedures. In acute or subacute malfunction of bioprosthetic pulmonary valves, the possibility of endocarditis is important to evaluate. Vaginal delivery can be safely undertaken by most pregnant patients with ACHD, with appropriate risk stratification and monitoring. For atrial arrhythmias in complex patients, such as those with a systemic right ventricle or Fontan circulation, rhythm control is typically preferred over rate control. New recommendations on guideline-directed medical therapy for heart failure include patients with a systemic right or left ventricle as well as discussions of pacing strategies for a systemic right ventricle and Fontan circulation."We'll continue to push the field to answer the questions because the patient population is not going anywhere – it's only getting larger," Gurvitz said in a statement. "In particular, our most complex patients are our fastest-growing group."Several members of the writing committee disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.Abstract/Full Text.Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter

Recommendations Developed for Managing Adults With Congenital Heart Disease

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