The word “congenital” means existing at birth. The terms “congenital heart defect” and “congenital heart disease” are often used to mean the same thing, but “defect” is more accurate. The heart ailment is a defect or abnormality, not a disease. A defect results when the heart or blood vessels near the heart don’t develop normally before birth.

If your child is born with a heart defect today, the chances are better than ever that the problem can be overcome and that a normal adult life will follow. Recent progress in diagnosis and treatment (surgery and heart catheterization) makes it possible to fix most defects, even those once thought to be hopeless. As diagnosis and treatment continue to advance, scientists will develop treatments for other defects.

After your child is diagnosed with a congenital heart defect, more tests may be needed. They’ll help the children’s heart specialist (pediatric cardiologist) and the surgeon to decide whether a treatment (surgery or heart catheterization) is a good idea. But before that point is reached, you can learn a lot to make the best use of the help available to you.