Investigation of echocardiographic characteristics and predictors for persistent defects of patent foramen ovale or patent ductus arteriosus in Chinese newbornsAt a glance of commentary

Background: Persistent patent foramen ovale (PFO) and patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) increase the adult risk of cryptogenic embolic stroke and chronic pulmonary hypertension. To understand the characteristics of PFO and PDA in newborns, we investigated the spontaneous closure rate and derived the determinants for residual defects. Methods: We utilized the database of congenital heart disease (CHD) in Xiamen ChangGung Memorial Hospital from 2015 to 2017 and allocated 2523 eligible newborns into four groups according to PDA, PFO, both or neither at birth. A total of 574, 1229, 202 and 518 newborns were assigned into the group of PFO and PDA, PFO alone, PDA alone and non-PFO/non-PDA, respectively. Regular echocardiographic follow-ups at baseline, 6, 12 and 24 months after birth were performed for evaluating the spontaneous closure rate in the subjects. Regression analysis was carried out to study the risk factors of residual congenital defects. Results: Newborns with PFO alone had the youngest birth age and lowest birth weight among the four groups. About one in four PDA-alone newborns had concomitant small ASD, i.e.,