Impact of Baseline Characteristics and Parental Risk Factors on CHDs: A Comparative Analysis Study

Impact of Baseline Characteristics and Parental Risk Factors on CHDs

Abstract

Objective: To identify the potential role of the patient’s baseline characteristics and assess the association of congenital heart defects (CHDs) with parental risk factors, particularly maternal chronic disease and socioeconomic status.
Methods: This case-control study included 376 subjects. Extensive patient histories, including the subjects’ anthropometric parameters and paternal risk factors, were collected from multiple hospitals in Lahore between March 2021 and April 2022. Children’s physical parameters, including body mass index, were measured according to the Centre’s for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. Statistical analyses were conducted using R-manager and GraphPad Prism.
Results: In the current study, 65.8% of CHD subjects and 64.9% of healthy subjects were male. The comparative assessment of the patient’s anthropometric parameters suggested no significant association with the heart defect. However, compared to healthy subjects, CHD patients were significantly underweight (p < 0.0001). However, the difference was not significant for the comparison between cyanotic and acyanotic CHD groups. The assessment of maternal risk factors showed significant associations for maternal hypertension [3.09 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.64-5.79] and maternal diabetes [2.92 (95% CI: 1.24-6.88)]. In addition, the impact of parental socioeconomic status was substantial: 25.7% and 46.6% of patients were from poor and middle-income families, respectively.
Conclusion: CHD in children was significantly associated with patients’ health status, including maternal hypertension and diabetes. However, this relationship was not found between cyanotic and acyanotic patients. In addition, parental socioeconomic status patients’ poses a significant burden on patients’ families and the healthcare system.