Until Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week are 255 days, ie 8 months and 10 days.
In 2024 Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week is from 7th February (Wednesday) to 14th February (Wednesday).
Heart is one of the most important organs of our body. Unfortunately, every year thousands of infants are born with a congenital heart defect (CHD) around the world. It is still one of the main causes of death during the first year of life. Many of us may not be aware of the real nature of different heart defects. This is why Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week has been established and is being observed annually on February 7-14.
The main aim of Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week is to educate and bring awareness about this kind of congenital defects. As the name “congenital” indicates, such defects are already existing at the moment of birth, so they are the result of what was happening already in the womb. It happens when the baby’s heart or blood vessels near to it do not develop normally before birth. This is why all women that are about to be mothers should be aware of congenital heart defects being the most common birth defect in the world. It turns out, however, that more than half of the parents have never even heard about it. This is why when they hear that terrible diagnosis, that there is something wrong with their newborn’s heart, they may feel extremely confused, scared, depressed and helpless. If they had all the knowledge about congenital heart defects at the beginning, they would be able to immediately start doing their best to help their child survive. This is why CHD awareness is such an important issue.
What should you know about congenital heart defects? It is important to be aware of the fact, that such a defect may be mild or more serious. This does not mean, however, that all heart defects have to be fatal. In many cases infants born with CHD live long as adults. In some cases, a child may need some open-heart surgeries, maybe even more than one. But what all parents of CHD children should also be aware of is that they are not alone. There are many other parents sharing their feelings, their fear, their anger. Talking to other people with similar problems can be a kind of therapy for the parent. So, on Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week, between February 7 and 14 we should all talk about this issue, help others understand what CHD is and how to deal with it. All women should also know, that some of such heart defects can be diagnosed on prenatal ultrasound. People who already live with a congenital heart defect need to be aware that they should talk to their cardiologist regularly.
Did you know?
CHD Awareness Week is not the only cardiological observance occurring in February in the United States. The whole month of February has been named American Heart Month, and the first Friday of this month is National Wear Red Day - a day, when many people wear red clothes in order to show their support for the awareness of heart disease