Congenital heart disease in newborns is a very serious topic for discussion, since this diagnosis justifiably causes fear in mothers for the life of the child. It is known that without surgery, approximately 70% of children with CHD do not survive even up to a year! So, to know more about this disease is a natural desire of future parents.
Congenital heart disease: causes
Heart pathology begins to form, as a rule, already at the 2nd week of pregnancy. Quite often, the cause of this is a viral disease (such as rubella, herpes, flu, etc.), suffered by the mother, her work in hazardous work, the age of the pregnant woman, uncontrolled medication, and alcoholism. A serious role in the formation of CHD is played by the heredity of the baby, gene or chromosomal mutations.
Signs of Congenital Heart Disease
One of the main signs that the newborn has a pathology of the heart muscle is cyanosis of the mucous membranes and skin (the so-called cyanosis). The child is sluggish, moody, eats poorly (he quickly gets tired when feeding), the baby has excessive sweating, and the heart rate increases.
Noises caused by pathological changes in the heart can be detected after the birth of the crumbs almost immediately, but sometimes this happens only after a few months. So they, although they are one of the signs of CHD, cannot act as the main symptom.
To accurately diagnose congenital heart disease in newborns, serious examinations are required: ultrasound, x-ray and electrocardiography, as well as vascular catheterization with measurement of intracavitary pressure in the heart muscle. All this is carried out both to determine the degree and type of pathology, and to develop an operational strategy.
Even during pregnancy, starting from the fourteenth week, with the help of ultrasound in the fetus, it is possible to determine the presence of heart disease. In this case, depending on the severity of the condition of the newborn, childbirth is carried out in a special way, and the operation is performed immediately after its birth.
How is severe congenital heart disease treated in newborns?
For the treatment of severe CHD, only operational methods are used. And the earlier this intervention was carried out, the more chances a newborn has to recover.
Such operations are performed, as a rule, on an open heart, using a cardiopulmonary bypass. And in recent years, endoscopic surgeries have become more frequent , in which a catheter is inserted through the baby’s vein and brought to the heart under X-ray control, where an operation is performed using special thin instruments.
In especially severe cases of CHD, an operation can be carried out in several stages: at first, the baby’s condition is relieved, and the next surgical intervention eliminates the pathology itself.
If the child has defects that cannot be treated, then a heart transplant is indicated .
Does congenital heart disease in newborns always require surgery?
There are also such changes in the heart, which with age pass by themselves. These include minor defects in the interventricular septum. They eventually close spontaneously and do not require surgical intervention. In such cases, a doctor’s observation, frequent walks in the fresh air, hardening and protecting the child from infections are enough.