Prevalence of congenital heart disease among newborns with respiratory distress and cyanosis in a tertiary care hospital in Birjand, Iran, during 2016

Congenital heart disease (CHD) occurs in about 8 cases per 1,000 live births and is responsible for 30% of all neonatal deaths. The reportedly high prevalence of CHD underscores the necessity of the implementation of local evaluations and screening programs in order to plan for appropriate interventions. Regarding this, the present study was performed to determine the prevalence of CHD and its associated risk factors among the newborns with respiratory distress and cyanosis admitted to Vali-e-Asr Hospital in Birjand, Iran, in 2016. Methods: This cross-sectional analytical study was conducted on the records of 199 neonates admitted to the Neonatal Unit of Vali-e-Asr Hospital due to respiratory distress and cyanosis in 2016. The data were collected using a predesigned form covering such information as gender, type of delivery, and gestational diabetes. Data analysis was performed in SPSS software (version 22) using the Chi-squared test. P-value less than 5% was considered statistically significant. Results: Out of the 199 neonates enrolled in this study, 168 (84.4%) cases suffered from CHD. Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) was the most common anomaly among the neonates (n=85, 50.5%), followed by atrial septal defect (n=41, 24.4%), ventricular septal defect (n=36, 21.4%), transposition of great arteries (n=4, 2.2%), and other complex heart anomalies (e.g., shone complex; n=2, 1.1%), respectively. The results revealed that the presence of CHD, especially PDA, in neonates was associated with their parental interfamily marriage (P=0.024). Conclusions: The high prevalence and mortality of CHD necessitate the control of premarital and preconception potential risk factors (e.g., inter-family marriage) and preparation for the implementation of effective interventions for the neonates with respiratory distress and cyanosis.