February is Children’s Heart Month

The Children’s Heart Federation is keen to raise awareness about the 150,000 plus children and young people currently living with congenital heart disease, and is urging everyone to find out more by visiting their website: www.chfed.org.uk

Anne Keatley-Clarke, Chief Executive of the Children’s Heart Federation explains, “Raising awareness is vital if we are to help young heart patients and their families get the treatment and support they deserve.

"Most people associate heart defects with older people and think they are caused by an unhealthy lifestyle. They don’t realise how many children are born with heart conditions or acquire them early in life as a result of illness.”

Heart-rending facts

• One in every 133 children is born with a congenital heart condition - the most common birth defect in the UK, and a leading cause of birth-defect related deaths world-wide.
• Most primary schools will have at least one or two children with heart conditions, whilst secondary schools will often have one or two in every year group.
• Every year, a further 500 to 1,000 children develop heart conditions after birth.
• There are about 70,000 young people living with a heart condition.

Children’s Heart Federation* provides information and support through its free infoline 0808 808 5000, open Monday to Friday 9.30am to 5pm, and its website www.chfed.org.uk

*The Children's Heart Federation is an umbrella organisation with 23 member organisations, dedicated to helping children with congenital or acquired heart disease and their families in the UK and Ireland.