Certain Heart Disease Patients Face Mental Health Challenges

Patients with single ventricle (SV) heart disease commonly have mental health diagnoses, according to a study being presented at ACC.25.

“A better understanding of the relationship between mental health diagnoses (MHD) and other systemic morbidities is necessary to develop care models that address these neuropsychological challenges,” the researchers noted.

The investigators linked four SV research studies using administrative data from Pediatric Health Information Systems (PHIS). Data collection was initiated at the first available encounter in PHIS, and logistic regression was implemented to assess the link between SV complications and MHD. Overall, they analyzed 444 children from 23 centers.

The results identified MHD in 27.3% of patients. Anxiety disorders were observed in 10.4% of patients, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in 6.5%, developmental delay or neurodevelopmental disorder in 8.3%, communication disorders in 5%, autism spectrum disorder in 2.5%, depressive disorder in 2.5%, and suicide/self-harm in 2.3%. Moreover, in adjusted models, a major Fontan complication (defined as mortality, heart transplant, liver transplant, stroke, protein-losing enteropathy, plastic bronchitis, pacemaker placement, or endocarditis) was more likely to occur in individuals with a MHD (OR, 2.4; 95% CI 1.5-3.8).

“A systematic approach to identify and support MHD is integral to improving longitudinal outcomes for SV patients,” the researchers concluded.

Gregorie C. The impact of mental health diagnoses in single-ventricle heart disease. American College of Cardiology 2025; March 29-31, Chicago, IL.