Prevalence of congenital heart disease among school children in Qinghai Province

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of congenital heart disease (CHD) among school children in Qinghai province, a high-altitude region in China. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among school-aged children in 2019. All subjects completed a survey with a structure questionnaire and underwent CHD screening. CHD was screened by standard physical examination and further confirmed by echocardiography. Multivariate logistic regression were used to estimate the association of CHD prevalence with gender, nationality, and altitude. RESULTS: A total of 43,562 children aged 3–19 years participated in the study. The mean (SD) age was 11.2 (3.3) years. 49.7% were boys, and 80.0% were of Tibetan. CHD was identified in 293 children, with an overall prevalence of 6.73 ‰. Among them, 239 were unrecognized CHD, yielding a prevalence of 5.49 ‰. Atrial septal defect accounted for 51.9% of the CHD, followed by patent ductus arteriosus (31.1%), ventricular septal defect (9.9%). The CHD prevalence was significantly higher in female (8 ‰), Han race (18 ‰), children lived in Qumalai county (13 ‰), and children lived in a higher altitude (13 ‰). Female had greater prevalence of total CHD, atrial septal defect, and patent ductus arteriosus, but insignificant difference was observed in ventricular septal defect prvalence than male. In multivariable logistic regression analyses, female (OR, 1.48; 95% CI, 1.17–1.87, P = 0.001), Han population (OR, 3.28; 95% CI, 1.67–6.42, P = 0.001), and higher altitudes (OR, 2.28; 95% CI, 1.74–3.00, P < 0.001) were shown to be independently association with CHD prevalence. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of CHD in Qinghai province was 6.73 ‰. Altitude elevation, female, and Han population were independently association with CHD prevalence.