Exercise testing in congenital heart disease

Exercise testing in adult cardiac patients has mainly focused on ischaemic heart disease. The results of exercise testing with ECG monitoring are often helpful in diagnosing the presence of significant coronary artery disease. In children with heart disease, the type of pathology is different. Ischaemic heart disease is very rare. The majority of the patients present with congenital heart defects, which affect exercise capacity. In patients with congenital heart disease, exercise tests are frequently performed to measure exercise function or to assess abnormalities of cardiac rhythm. The risk of exercise testing is very low in the paediatric age group.1