Which patient group is the specialty of Adult Congenital Heart Disease (ACHD) specifically structured to manage long-term?
Answer
Individuals born with structural heart defects who have survived into adulthood
Adult Congenital Heart Disease (ACHD) specialists focus their expertise on a unique patient demographic: those individuals who were born with structural abnormalities of the heart but have lived long enough to become adults. While some of these defects might have been partially addressed in childhood via surgery or catheter-based procedures, ACHD specialists provide the necessary lifelong, specialized follow-up care. This ongoing management often involves subsequent diagnostics or new, targeted interventions tailored to the specific, complex, pre-existing structural issues.
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