Changing demographics of pulmonary arterial hypertension in congenital heart disease

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a serious complication of congenital heart disease (CHD). Without early surgical repair, around one-third of paediatric CHD patients develop significant PAH. Recent data from the Netherlands suggest that >4% of adult CHD patients have PAH, with higher rates in those with septal defects. A spectrum of cardiac defects is associated with PAH-CHD, although most cases develop as a consequence of large systemic-to-pulmonary shunts. Eisenmenger's syndrome, characterised by reversed pulmonary-to-systemic (right-to-left) shunt, represents the most advanced form of PAH-CHD and affects as many as 50% of those with PAH and left-to-right shunts. It is associated with the poorest outcome among patients with PAH-CHD. 40 yrs ago, ∼50% of children with CHD requiring intervention died within the first year, and