Tommy would not be alive without research, grants, and skilled hands being trained at top hospitals. Here is some information about CHD from the Children's Heart Foundation.
Congenital heart defects are America's #1 birth defect. Nearly one of every 100 babies is born with a CHD.
Congenital heart defects are the #1 cause of birth defect related deaths.
This year almost 40,000 babies will be born with a congenital heart defect. 4,000 of them will not live to see their first birthday.
91,000 life years are lost each year in this country due to congenital heart defects.
The cost for inpatient surgery to repair congenital heart defects exceeds $2.2 billion a year.
Congenital heart defects occur frequently and are often life threatening, yet research into them is grossly under funded.
Only one penny of every dollar donated to the American Heart Association goes towards congenital heart defect research.
Of every dollar the government spends on medical funding only a fraction of a penny is directed toward congenital heart defect research.
The Children's Heart Foundation is the only organization strictly created to fund congenital heart defect research.
In the last decade death rates for congenital heart defects have declined by almost 30% due to advances made through research.
The Children's Heart Foundation has directed almost $2 million to 24 different congenital heart defect research projects.
More than 50% of all children born with a congenital heart defect will require at least one invasive surgery in their lifetime.
There are 35 different types of congenital heart defects. Little is known about the cause of most them. There is not yet a cure for any of them.
In the U.S., twice as many children die from congenital heart defects each year than from all forms of childhood cancer combined, yet funding for pediatric cancer research is five times higher than funding for CHD.
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