ECHDO Meetings
Cologne 2013
The 2013 ECHDO General Assembly will take place in Cologne from 2pm on Friday 22 until Saturday 23 March 2013.
This event will be attached to the Association for European Paediatric and Congenital Cardiology Working Group Meeting "Psycho-Social Care from Foetus to Adult".
More information on the conference venue, including detailed maps can be found by visiting the conference webpage.
Download the AEPC Working Group Meeting flyer
Complete the form below to register for the 2013 ECHDO General Assembly.
Each field marked green must be completed for the form to successfully send.
This event will be attached to the Association for European Paediatric and Congenital Cardiology Working Group Meeting "Psycho-Social Care from Foetus to Adult".
More information on the conference venue, including detailed maps can be found by visiting the conference webpage.
Download the AEPC Working Group Meeting flyer
Complete the form below to register for the 2013 ECHDO General Assembly.
Each field marked green must be completed for the form to successfully send.
Istanbul 2012

Download the programme of events to find out what went on in Istanbul.
Lake Balaton 2011
A report from this event is currently in the works.
London 2010

View the programme of activities and the list of organisations that took part.
The meeting was very successful in its main aims:
- Getting ECHDO firmly established to conduct its business by electing a new Board and agreeing changes to its legal documents
- Creating opportunities for delegates to fulfil ECHDO’s mission:
- To share information and experiences in order to improve access to the best possible care and treatment for all people affected by CHD in Europe
- Having fun!
View the London meeting gallery
Joint Meeting of ECHDO & Corience: Barcelona 2009

The second day was the 4th ECHDO/Corience meeting, where issues like the future of the Corience website and the next steps for ECHDO were discussed. The meeting also included a compelling session on medical presentations. Prof. Dr. Hess from the German Heart Centre in Munich talked about the Melody valve, a new procedure to replace a pulmonary valve without the need for open-heart surgery. Ines Hartwig-Zaidan from MTBASA in Berlin talked about self-management of anticoagulation for children and adults on blood thinning drugs.
Although new members are joining, Hermine Nock and ECHDO continue to reach out. ”We are trying to find groups supporting patients and families affected by CoHD in Latvia, Malta, Portugal, Slovakia and the former Yugoslavian countries. Please contact us!” says Hermine Nock.
Joint Meeting of ECHDO & Corience: Berlin 2008

Surgeons and cardiologists from renowned medical centres across Europe presented new developments in the treatment of Congenital Heart Disease (CHD), reported on clinical trials to achieve better drug safety, and discussed the individual legal rights of children who take part in clinical studies.
Download the ECHDO information flyer and press release
Bruges 2007
You can request the meeting minutes at
Berlin 2007
The first ECHDO meeting was organised by the German Bundesverband Herzkranke Kinder e.V. and supported by German Kompetenznetz Angeborene Herzfehler.
- Eva-Luise Köhler, First Lady and patroness of ACHSE (Alliance of chronically rare diseases) sent words of welcome, saying that she esteemed the idea of a European network as a very important one. She also asked ECHDO to help solving existing problems especially in the research of CHD.
- The patroness of the Kompetenznetz Angeborene Herzfehler, Friede Springer, congratulated the representatives on their European idea.
- Dr. Gabriele Hausdorf from the German ministry of research and education is also supporting the network and said she was convinced that it should be used as a model for other chronic congenital disease organisations.
- Dr. András Szatmári, PhD, Hungary, President of the Association for European Paediatric Cardiology (AEPC) said he was looking forward to achieving standardised treatment and education of doctors within Europe with the support of patients groups.
- Lastly Prof. Hans Heiner Kramer, Kiel, president of the German Association of Paediatric Cardiology, underlined the importance of the united self-help-organisations as a pressure group in the struggle for improved treatment of CHD.