Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39812797›Full record

ArticlePediatric cardiology2026

Screening for Structural Heart Defects: A Single-Center Retrospective Cost Analysis for Fetal Echocardiography in Adults with Congenital Heart Disease.

David M Leone, Benjamin Ittleman, Kathryn Virk, Catherine Albright, Bhawna Arya, Jason Deen

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in Pediatric cardiology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

David M Leone *Heart Institute, Cincinnati Children's Hospital, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, USA. David.leone@cchmc.org.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4296-4081
Benjamin Ittleman *University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2609-5779
Kathryn VirkDepartment of Pediatric Cardiology, Seattle Children's Hospital, Seattle, WA, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7905-2684
Catherine AlbrightDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5459-8904
Bhawna AryaDepartment of Pediatric Cardiology, Seattle Children's Hospital, Seattle, WA, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8552-5396
Jason DeenDepartment of Pediatric Cardiology, Seattle Children's Hospital, Seattle, WA, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0173-8659

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Fetal echocardiography (FE) is recommended for parents with congenital heart disease (pCHD) due to a 3-6% recurrence risk of congenital heart disease (CHD). This study aimed to evaluate the cost of FE for detecting neonatal CHD in pCHD. FE data were collected between 12/2015 and 12/2022. Parents were stratified by CHD complexity: "simple" (class I) and "complex" (class II/III). Cost analysis compared universal FE with selective FE following a positive level II screening anatomical ultrasound (SAU). Primary outcomes included the cost and number needed to screen (NNT) to detect one case of neonatal CHD. Of 419 pCHD cases, 48 were analyzed separately due to additional FE indications. Among the remaining 371 cases (73% maternal, 27% paternal; mean maternal age: 31 years), 14 postnatal CHD cases were detected (3.8%). Recurrence rates were 1.9% for simple pCHD (n = 156) and 5.1% for complex pCHD (n = 215). Universal FE increased the cost of detecting neonatal CHD. The cost per detected case was $267,157 for simple CHD (NNT = 560) and $135,125 for complex CHD (NNT = 288). The lower sensitivity of SAU reduced the cost of universal FE. In this single-center cohort, the recurrence risk of CHD in pCHD is higher than in the general population, particularly in complex cases. Universal screening in simple pCHD is costlier with high-sensitivity SAU. Targeted screening in complex pCHD may offer a better cost-to-risk ratio, highlighting the need for early detection to improve outcomes. The cost effectiveness is dependent on local SAU sensitivity rates.

Indexed as

EchocardiographyHeart Defects, CongenitalUltrasonography, PrenatalAdultCost-Benefit AnalysisCosts and Cost AnalysisFemaleHumansInfant, NewbornMalePregnancyRetrospective StudiesAdult congenital heart diseaseCongenital heart diseaseCost analysisFetal echocardiologyScreening anatomical ultrasoundSensitivity analysis

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.