Transitioning Cardiac Patients From Pediatric to Adult Care

Once mostly a condition of childhood, our patients with congenital heart disease are now living well into adulthood: nearly two million American children and adults are living with a congenital heart defect. What are the special medical needs of our cardiac patients as they transition from adolescence to adulthood? Dr. Michael McConnell, co-director of the adult congenital heart disease clinic at Sibley Heart Center Cardiology in Atlanta and associate professor of pediatrics and medicine at Emory University School of Medicine, reflects upon how our medical system can improve our capacity to care for the growing numbers of adult patients with a congenital heart defect. Dr. Jennifer Shu hosts.