Congenital Heart Condition, Any Shot at Class 1?

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cbh898

Filing Flight Plan
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cbh898
Hello

I was born with a congenital heart condition (tetralogy of fallot with pulmonary atresia) that was surgically repaired as a baby. I’ve always wanted to become a pilot but have no idea if I could even get a medical to pursue it. I’ve had regular follow ups with my cardiologist and besides slightly reduced exercise tolerance, I am completely fine and free of any symptoms. Is this something the FAA would consider issuing an SI for?
 
"[C]areful consideration of surgical and perisurgical history, historic and current cardiac function testing, history of ectopy and arrhythmia, exercise tolerance, and epidemiological understanding are all necessary to assess the aeromedical risk of an airman with tetralogy of Fallot."

See page 11:
https://www.faa.gov/other_visit/avi...signee_types/ame/fasmb/media/201104_color.pdf

This presentation concludes with "Pt received a special issuance FAA Flying Class 1 medical certificate," so it's possible:
http://asmameeting.org/asma2013_mp/pdfs/asma2013_present_514.pdf
 
Sounds like you have a pretty good chance to me. I would do a consult with @bbchien before you do a real exam. For a reasonable fee he will review your records, tell you your likelihood of passing a 1st class exam, and have you get all your records together in order to submit, plus have you get any tests likely needed done for submission at the exam, greatly speeding up the process if necessary. For your condition, I would travel to him, have him do the exam so he can follow up with the FAA if needed. I hope you have good luck with this.
 
If it was surgically corrected ages ago and you've not had problems since, you're likely not to have any big problem, but I agree you should discuss this with a knowledgeable AME as others have pointed out.
 
cbh898 said:
Hello

I was born with a congenital heart condition (tetralogy of fallot with pulmonary atresia) that was surgically repaired as a baby. I’ve always wanted to become a pilot but have no idea if I could even get a medical to pursue it. I’ve had regular follow ups with my cardiologist and besides slightly reduced exercise tolerance, I am completely fine and free of any symptoms. Is this something the FAA would consider issuing an SI for?
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cbh898 said:
Hello

I was born with a congenital heart condition (tetralogy of fallot with pulmonary atresia) that was surgically repaired as a baby. I’ve always wanted to become a pilot but have no idea if I could even get a medical to pursue it. I’ve had regular follow ups with my cardiologist and besides slightly reduced exercise tolerance, I am completely fine and free of any symptoms. Is this something the FAA would consider issuing an SI for?
Click to expand...

Surgical repair?

This is certainly not the normal cardiac case, but I have seen some crazy ones over the years. This is one where you will need to educate the FAA on the condition first, and the provide testing that support your asymptomatic and stable condition. That SINGLE submission will go to a cardiac panel assembled at the FAS office. I would recommend working with an aviation attorney, that way we can develop a comprehensive and persuasive submission.
 
cbh898 said:
Hello

I was born with a congenital heart condition (tetralogy of fallot with pulmonary atresia) that was surgically repaired as a baby. I’ve always wanted to become a pilot but have no idea if I could even get a medical to pursue it. I’ve had regular follow ups with my cardiologist and besides slightly reduced exercise tolerance, I am completely fine and free of any symptoms. Is this something the FAA would consider issuing an SI for?
Click to expand...
Hi,
I was wondering if you ever got FAA clearance. My grandson is 13 years old and had his ToF repair completed at 3 months old. His dream is to obtain his pilot's license. If it's not possible, we want to start directing his dreams and goals in another direction.
 
billandrobin.r said:
Hi,
I was wondering if you ever got FAA clearance. My grandson is 13 years old and had his ToF repair completed at 3 months old. His dream is to obtain his pilot's license. If it's not possible, we want to start directing his dreams and goals in another direction.
Click to expand...
The member you're replying to hasn't been on the forum since he made that post in 2022, so he's unlikely to respond.

But the general suggestion would be for your grandson to schedule a CONSULTATION, not an exam, with a Senior AME known for handling tough cases. He should be prepared to discuss his entire medical history, including any other physical or mental health conditions to find out what his chances are.

Even if your grandson is not able to obtain a medical certificate, there are options to get a pilot's license that don't require one.
 
Lindberg said:
The member you're replying to hasn't been on the forum since he made that post in 2022, so he's unlikely to respond.

But the general suggestion would be for your grandson to schedule a CONSULTATION, not an exam, with a Senior AME known for handling tough cases. He should be prepared to discuss his entire medical history, including any other physical or mental health conditions to find out what his chances are.

Even if your grandson is not able to obtain a medical certificate, there are options to get a pilot's license that don't require one.
Click to expand...
Thank you very much for that information. We have scheduled consult with a senior AME.
 
cbh898 said:
Hello

I was born with a congenital heart condition (tetralogy of fallot with pulmonary atresia) that was surgically repaired as a baby. I’ve always wanted to become a pilot but have no idea if I could even get a medical to pursue it. I’ve had regular follow ups with my cardiologist and besides slightly reduced exercise tolerance, I am completely fine and free of any symptoms. Is this something the FAA would consider issuing an SI for?
Click to expand...
I've had several airmen/applicants with congenital heart defects. I think I've had one with Tet Fallot and we ultimately got him an SI.

Where do you live at? IS everything stable and all your testing favorable?
 
GoFlightMed said:
I've had several airmen/applicants with congenital heart defects. I think I've had one with Tet Fallot and we ultimately got him an SI.

Where do you live at? IS everything stable and all your testing favorable?
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We live north of Orlando. All his tests are favorable, his heart has been completely stable, for the last 12 years, since repair was completed.
 
You will need every bit of record that you can grab
Current Echo (bubble). Unclear to me from what you wrote if you had a combined procedure (Glenn, Norwood) or a single procedure (depends on how atretic the PA was at the time). They will want the operative notes.
The will want a treadmill run with desaturation monitoring
Rhythm monitor

If you've gone to adulthood w/o further intervention and without pulmonary hypertension nor right to left shunting, you have a good crack at this.....
 
Thank you for your reply and information. My questions were concerning my 13-year-old grandson, he hasn't made it to adulthood yet. I am unsure if he had a single or combined procedure. He is extremely goal oriented for his young age. He has been going to aerospace summer camps for years and next summer he wants to start flight school so that he can have his S3 by age 16. Then proceed on to S1 as he gets older. We are trying to teach him that success doesn't happen without years of planning and preparation.
 
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