Abstract
BACKGROUNDː Transposition of the Great Arteries (TGA) is one of the most common types of congenital heart defects (CHD). Recent advances in computed tomography angiography (CTA) have helped in the detection of this condition. However, the scientific literature remains scarce with regards to a comparison between Iran and Pakistan, hence this study was conducted.
METHODSː A cross-sectional study was conducted comparing patient cohorts from Pakistan and Iran. Patients diagnosed with CHD as confirmed by CTA, aged less than 18-year-old were included in this study. Data regarding demographics, nationality, and any CHDs was extracted via patient interviews which were further supplemented by screening of the hospital records. Data analysis was conducted using SPSS version 21 (Chicago, IL: IBM SPSS Statistics) where a p-value <0.05 was statistically significant.
RESULTSː Levocardia was the most common cardiac axis in both of our populations (n=119, 70.0% for Pakistan and n=31, 100.0% for Iran). Ventricular septal defect (VSD) was noted in 154 (90.6%) and 15 (48.4%) of the patients from the Pakistani and Iranian cohort, respectively. Prevalence of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) was found to be significantly associated between the populations with an increased odds of PDA observed in the Iranian population (n=27, 87.1%) compared to the Pakistani population (n=92, 54.1%) (p <0.001).
CONCLUSIONSː Our study highlights an important association of PDA between Pakistan and Iran, with increased odds of PDA in the Iranian population. Moreover, the prevalence of various CHDs in both populations raises concerns that warrant investigation to study the possible contributory factors.