title: Observed prevalence of congenital heart defects from a surveillance study in China.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to estimate the prevalence of major and minor congenital heart defects among fetuses and neonates using sonography in a general population of 4 areas surrounding Shanghai, China.
  
  
  METHODS
  Pregnant women were recruited between April 2004 and December 2005 in Jiaxing City, Suzhou City, Changshu County, and Haining County. All participants could have 3 sonographic examinations performed by specially trained physicians regardless of medical indication: a fetal sonographic screen and fetal echocardiography between 20 and 28 weeks' gestation and neonatal echocardiography. Diagnoses of congenital heart defects were made on the basis of review of all available scans by an international group of experts in pediatric cardiology. Prevalence rates were calculated per 1000 births.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among 4006 scanned fetuses and neonates, there were 75 congenital heart defects, including 12 major defects. The observed prevalence for all congenital heart defects was 18.7 (95% confidence interval, 14.8-23.5) per 1000 births, and the prevalence for major defects was 3.0 (95% confidence interval, 1.6-5.2) per 1000 births. The most common defects were ventricular septal defects (n = 47 [62.7%]), atrial septal defects (n = 14 [18.7%]), tetralogy of Fallot (n = 4 [5.3%]), and hypoplastic left heart syndrome (n = 3 [4.0%]).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prevalence of all congenital heart defects in the 4 areas of China studied was higher than that reported in other countries, with ventricular septal defects being the most frequent defects. Our data likely reflect a better estimate of the total prevalence of congenital heart defects in China than reported previously.
authors.affiliation: School of Public Health, Peking University Health Science Center, 38 Xueyuan Rd, Haidian District, 100191 Beijing, China. lizhu3699@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Yali
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Tiffany
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Riehle-Colarusso
authors.forename: Adolfo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Correa
authors.forename: Song
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Xinheng
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.forename: Jacqueline
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gindler
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Webb
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Jean
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Trines
authors.forename: Robert J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Berry
authors.forename: Lorraine
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yeung
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.forename: Meifang
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Hua
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Xiamei
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Zhu
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D011159:Population Surveillance; D011247:Pregnancy; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D016216:Ultrasonography, Prenatal