What is most common congenital heart defect?
The most common type of heart defect is a ventricular septal defect (VSD).
How does congenital heart disease affect the heart?
Some congenital heart defects send more blood to the lungs, causing pressure to build. This eventually causes your heart muscle to weaken and sometimes to fail. Heart failure. Heart failure (congestive heart failure) means your heart can’t pump enough blood to meet your body’s needs.
What is a congenital heart problem?
Congenital heart disease is a general term for a range of birth defects that affect the normal way the heart works. The term “congenital” means the condition is present from birth. Congenital heart disease is one of the most common types of birth defect, affecting almost 1 in 100 babies born in the UK.
What are some examples of congenital heart defects?
Congenital heart disease refers to a range of possible heart defects.
- Aortic valve stenosis. Aortic valve stenosis is a serious type of congenital heart defect.
- Coarctation of the aorta.
- Ebstein’s anomaly.
- Patent ductus arteriosus.
- Pulmonary valve stenosis.
- Septal defects.
- Single ventricle defects.
- Tetralogy of Fallot.
When do congenital heart defects develop?
A baby’s heart starts to develop at conception. But it is fully formed by 8 weeks into the pregnancy. Congenital heart defects happen in the first 8 weeks of the baby’s development.
What congenital heart abnormalities are the result of?
Congenital heart disease occurs as a result of an early developmental problem in the heart’s structure. The defect typically interferes with the normal flow of blood through the heart, which may affect breathing.
Is a heart murmur a congenital heart defect?
Heart murmurs can be present at birth (congenital) or develop later in life. Heart murmurs can be harmless (innocent) or abnormal. An innocent heart murmur is not a sign of heart disease and doesn’t need treatment. Abnormal heart murmurs require follow-up testing to determine the cause.
What are the four classifications of congenital heart defects?
Congenital Heart Defect Types
- Tetralogy of Fallot.
- Transposition of the great vessels.
- Pulmonary atresia.
- Total anomalous pulmonary venous return.
- Truncus arteriosus.
- Hypoplastic left heart syndrome.
- Tricuspid valve abnormalities.
How does congenital heart defects occur?
Most cases of congenital heart defect have no known cause. But some types of congenital heart defects occur more often when the mother comes in contact with some types of substances in the first few weeks of pregnancy. This is the time when the baby’s heart is growing.
When do congenital defects develop?
Birth defects can occur during any stage of pregnancy. Most birth defects occur in the first 3 months of pregnancy, when the organs of the baby are forming. This is a very important stage of development. However, some birth defects occur later in pregnancy.
What congenital heart disease is associated with heart murmurs?
In children, abnormal murmurs are usually caused by structural problems of the heart (congenital heart defects). Common congenital defects that cause heart murmurs include: Holes in the heart. Known as septal defects, holes in the heart may or may not be serious, depending on the size of the hole and its location.
What happens to a baby with congenital heart defects?
CHDs are present at birth and can affect the structure of a baby’s heart and the way it works. They can affect how blood flows through the heart and out to the rest of the body.
What makes an atrial septal defect a congenital defect?
Atrial septal defect is considerered a simple congenital heart defect because the hole may close on its own as the heart grows during childhood, and repair may not be necessary. Cross-section of a normal heart and a heart with an atrial septal defect. Figure A shows the structure and blood flow inside a normal heart.
How is surgery used to treat congenital heart disease?
Open-heart surgery is used to repair VSDs. Simple congenital heart defects also can involve the heart’s valves. These valves control the flow of blood from the atria to the ventricles and from the ventricles into the two large arteries connected to the heart (the aorta and the pulmonary artery).
Are there more congenital heart defects in boys than girls?
Congenital heart defects are slightly more common at birth in boys than girls. Some congenital heart defects are a characteristic of conditions such as Turner syndrome that more commonly affect females. Almost all newborns in the United States are screened for congenital heart defects in the first few days after birth. However]
