About 40,000 children are born with a heart defect each year. Most of these children can benefit from surgery even if the defect is severe. When surgery is necessary, many medical treatments are available to help the heart work properly. There is nothing that parents could have done to prevent these defects.

The two types of heart disease in children are "congenital" and "acquired." Congenital heart disease (also known as a congenital heart defect) is present at birth. Some defects in this category are patent ductus arteriosis, atrial septal defects and ventricular septal defects. Acquired heart disease, which develops sometime during childhood, includes diseases such as Kawasaki disease, rheumatic fever and infective endocarditis.

Kawasaki disease is an example of acquired heart disease that occurs primarily in children who are 5 years old or younger. Although medical knowledge of the disease is still developing, there are steps you can take to recognize the symptoms and deal with the disease's effects.

During 2003, physicians at The Sanger Clinic performed more than 200 operations for congenital heart disease, more than any other institution in North Carolina. Closed corrective operations are performed in children with a weight of 1.5 kilograms and open corrective operations with cardio-pulmonary bypass are performed in children with a weight of 2 kilograms or greater. It is our hope that earlier correction will offer improved long-term outcome and survival.