Complex Congenital Heart Disease and Neurodevelopment. A Case Study of Fraternal Twins

ABSTRACT

Congenital heart defects have been associated with adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes due to factors that result in a hypoxic-ischemic cerebral cumulative effect. We present a pair of fraternal twins: the first twin was healthy, and the second was born with a complex congenital heart defect (CCHD). They were followed for growth and neurodevelopmental outcomes to determine the comparative effect of exposure to a CCHD. Results show that exposure to a CCHD could be related to a persistent motor deficiency with hypotonia and concurrent height for age delay. CCHD requires a comprehensive neurodevelopmental approach; the pathophysiology and the surrounding stimuli are influential.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon request.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation of Colombia (COLCIENCIAS, code Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación de Colombia 110277757376); Universidad Industrial de Santander, Hospital Universitario de Santander (code 758-2017); and the Colombian Association of Neonatology (ASCON).