Grant: Project Grant

1% of newborns in Canada are born with congenital heart defects (CHD) and most of them now survive well into adulthood. During their life, survivors of CHD frequently suffer from cognitive deficits, as well as a higher risk of developing cardiac complications and early onset dementia as they age. Studies have shown some effects of CHD on brain structure, but the effects of CHD on brain vascular health in adults remains poorly understood. Currently, individuals with CHD have no proven strategy to mitigate these effects of disease on cognition and brain health. In other groups of younger and older adults, exercise has been shown to improve cognition and brain health. But while regular exercise has been shown to improve cardiovascular health in CHD, we do not know the effects of exercise on cognition and brain health. The proposed study will assess whether a 12-week exercise intervention can be used to improve cognitive abilities and brain health in young adults with CHD. Specifically, we will investigate whether improvements in cognition are linked to improvements in brain vascular health. Finally, we will investigate whether sex and other factors affect the efficacy of the intervention on cognition. This proof-of-concept study represents a first step in establishing the beneficial effects of a physical activity intervention on cognition and brain health in this high-risk group. Demonstration of these effects will help survivors of CHD make informed choices and clinicians to provide facilitated access to exercise programs.