Adults with congenital heart disease have unique needs for ongoing care and support. The Center for Adults with Congenital Heart Disease (ACHD) at the Washington University and Barnes-Jewish Heart & Vascular Center offers comprehensive care that is unmatched in the Midwest.
Our team can manage the entire breadth of congenital heart disease, from simple to complex problems.
Unmatched Adult Congenital Heart Care in the Midwest
Our ACHD program, begun in 1992, is one of the largest in the Midwest for adults with congenital heart defects. Patients and physicians choose us for our:
- Comprehensive care: The Center for Adults with Congenital Heart Disease is equipped to provide the highest level of care to this unique population of patients. We work closely with St. Louis Children’s Hospital to treat people from birth throughout their lives.
- Surgical expertise: Our team performs all types of surgical repair for congenital heart disease in adults. We provide heart transplantation, arrhythmia treatment, pacemaker and device placement, and pregnancy care for patients with ACHD.
- Minimally invasive therapies: We use tiny incisions to perform cardiac catheterization and percutaneous intervention procedures. These techniques enable us to implant replacement heart valves using a catheter, thereby avoiding open heart surgery.
Treating Adults With Congenital Heart Disease
We provide expert care to patients with any degree of congenital heart defect. Our services include:
- Highly skilled cardiothoracic surgery: You have access to surgical consultation and treatment by specially trained adult and pediatric cardiovascular surgeons. We offer advanced therapies including heart valve replacement and repair. We also deliver heart transplantation and multi-organ transplant through our transplant center.
- Collaborative long-term care: Your cardiovascular and internal medicine care often includes support from experts in psychiatry, psychology, social work and other related specialties.
- Transition to adult care: Moving from pediatric to adult providers can be emotional. Our formal transition program supports young people through this transition. We can continue to consult and collaborate with the pediatric cardiologists who may have cared for you as a child or adolescent.
- Maternal heart care: We provide specialized reproductive care for women with congenital heart disease. You receive comprehensive care during pregnancy and delivery, in collaboration with our specialists in high-risk obstetrics.
- Electrophysiologic evaluation and intervention: We use traditional and noninvasive ablation and other techniques to control arrhythmia.
- Pulmonary hypertension management: We have a joint program with Washington University experts in the management of pulmonary hypertension. This condition, which causes high blood pressure and breathlessness, is associated with congenital heart disease.
- Experienced round-the-clock care: Our dedicated doctors and nurses offer 24-hour availability for telephone consultations.
What Are Congenital Heart Defects in Adults?
Approximately 1 percent of newborns in the U.S. have some form of congenital heart disease (CHD), meaning they were born with a structural defect in the heart. Congenital heart defects range from minor conditions to complex or potentially life-threatening structural abnormalities.
As these children grow up, they continue to face medical issues. These issues may be related to the original defect or later surgical interventions.
Adult congenital heart defects we treat
We treat all types of ACHD patients, including:
- longtime congenital heart patients who have one or more cardiac operations during childhood or adolescence
- first-time surgical patients who have congenital heart disease but have not received surgical treatment
- adults with a new diagnosis of a congenital heart defect that previously went unrecognized
Imaging and Diagnosis of Adult Congenital Heart Disease
Our center uses all available diagnostic tools to assess potential ACHD and monitor your well-being. We use state-of-the-art equipment for all types of imaging. Learn more about diagnostic testing for heart disease.
Depending on the issue affecting your heart and previous treatment, imaging studies may include:
- diagnostic catheterization, which uses a tiny camera on a catheter (fine, flexible tube) inserted through a puncture in a blood vessel to pinpoint heart defects
- transthoracic echocardiography (echo), or TTE, which uses sound waves to produce an image of your heart
- transesophageal echo (TEE), which uses a wand placed in your esophagus (tube that runs from the throat to the stomach) to provide very clear pictures of your heart
- intracardiac echo (ICE), a catheter-based procedure to take pictures inside your heart
- cardiac MRI and cardiac CT to create 2D and 3D pictures and videos of your heart
- cardiac PET, a test not commonly available, to show healthy and damaged heart muscle, including heart disease or damage to your heart
- electrophysiology studies to monitor and correct arrhythmia and heart rhythm disorders
- 3D printing to create models of your heart for presurgical planning
Our Congenital Heart Disease Team
Our specialized cardiologists, recognized authorities and respected colleagues work together to meet each patient’s specific needs. Find a doctor.
Your care team may include:
- adult and pediatric cardiologists doctors who specialize in heart problems
- adult and pediatric cardiothoracic surgeons who perform structural surgeries
- radiologists who specialize in analyzing images of structural heart defects to accurately diagnose your condition
- electrophysiologists, cardiologists who are experts in heart rhythm disorders
- interventional cardiologists who perform minimally invasive, catheter-based procedures
- expert nurses, including a nurse practitioner and nurse coordinators
- mental health specialists, including psychiatrists, community mental health providers and a neurocognitive clinic for patients with Down syndrome
Contact Us
To make an appointment at the Center for Adults with Congenital Heart Disease at Washington University and Barnes-Jewish Heart & Vascular Center, call 888-998-7953.