Congenital heart disease is a malformation of the heart or adjacent blood vessels present in the newborn or fetus. It should be noted that some heart diseases manifest themselves months or years later.
In this case, we are talking about a birth problem in which the heart has congenital disabilities, such as an incomplete heart, with narrow blood vessels, leaky valves, or holes in the septa…
There are different types of congenital heart imperfections, some of which are mild and only pose a slight risk to the child’s health, and others may require immediate surgery.
Heart disease can be classified into:
- Heart disease that obstructs blood flow
- Cyanotic congenital heart disease, in which abnormal blood flow is from the pulmonary to the systemic circulation, passing deoxygenated blood to organs and tissues
- Those that produce short circuits between left and right (the passage of blood from the systemic to the pulmonary circulation are the interventricular communications and the interatrial communications).
- Ventricular communication: they have a hole that communicates both ventricles, the most frequent congenital heart disease. It may be sarcoidosis, and the gap may close on its own, but if it continues to grow, excessive blood will be pumped into the lungs, leading to heart failure.
- An atrial septal defect is a hole between the atria that allows blood to pass between them. The blood will fluctuate between the left and the right, and if too much blood reaches the right, the lungs will be pressed. Usually, atrial septal defects do not cause problems, although sometimes they cause too much, such as heart failure, hypertension, strokes…
- Tetralogy of Fallot: this is a complex heart disease in which interventricular communication, pulmonary artery stenosis, right ventricular hypertrophy, and dominance of the aorta stand out. The baby takes on a sickly blue or purple hue. It prevents blood from getting the lungs to be oxygenated. Advances in new surgical techniques allow these problems to be corrected.
- Long QT syndrome: This is a structural abnormality in the potassium and sodium channels of the heart. It can cause arrhythmias that lead to syncope, seizures, stops, and even sudden death.
- Short QT syndrome: this is a genetic syndrome related to the presence of atrial fibrillation. It is characterized by having an electrocardiogram QT interval faster than expected.
- Brugada syndrome: this is a genetic disease characterized by the presence of an electrocardiographic abnormality. It is a hereditary disease.
These cardiac disorders are related to sudden death diseases.
Medical tests for congenital heart disease
Most congenital heart diseases are diagnosed by ultrasound before delivery occurs in routine studies performed on pregnant women to monitor the progress of pregnancy and the health status of both the mother and the fetus.
There are heart diseases that are detected only at birth or shortly after. If there are congenital severe heart diseases, these will be identified in the baby’s check-ups after birth.
Prognosis of congenital heart disease
As mentioned in the previous section, there are numerous congenital heart diseases whose severity varies, from practically invisible problems that are resolved spontaneously over time to severe conditions in which the patient will require hospital admission and surgery. Practically urgent.
Causes of congenital heart disease
The causes of congenital heart disease are unidentified, although some factors have been identified that can increase these diseases:
- Genetic cause: they can be part of genetic or chromosomal syndromes such as Down syndrome, Marfan syndrome, Noonan syndrome, or Turner syndrome.
- Nutritional status of the mother: lack of iodine, folate, being overweight, or diseases such as diabetes are related to the appearance of congenital anomalies in the fetus, according to the World Health Organization.
- Infections and toxic substances: the consumption of alcoholic beverages or tobacco, some medicines or chemical substances, and even diseases such as rubella can favor the appearance of heart disease.
Can congenital heart disease be prevented?
Primary prevention measures for congenital malformations can reduce the frequency with which these problems appear.
- Improve the diet of pregnant women with vitamins and minerals, such as folic acid
- Eliminate tobacco and alcohol consumption in pregnant women
- Control blood glucose levels if the pregnant woman suffers from diabetes
- Avoid exposure to toxic substances
Congenital heart disease treatments
- Pharmacological treatment: it occurs in the acute phase when the patient has suffered angina pectoris or heart attack. It is a heart attack due to total occlusion of the artery, and an attempt is made to unclog it. The medication used is acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin), platelet antiaggregants, anticoagulants, beta-blockers, nitroglycerin, thrombolytics or fibrinolytic, and drugs to prevent pain.
- Surgical treatment: occurs in severe problems or when medication is insufficient. Surgery is performed on the artery. Percutaneous angioplasty or revascularization, coronary artery bypass surgery, or bypass.
- Long-term treatment: consists of modifying the patient’s lifestyle. Quit smoking, moderate alcohol consumption, balanced diet, regular exercise, control risk factors, and relax.
What specialist treats congenital heart disease?
Babies or children with congenital problems are diagnosed and treated by a pediatric cardiologist. If an intervention is necessary, the one in charge of dealing with the disease will be the cardiac surgeon or the cardiovascular surgeon.
Heart disease can have different levels of severity and a wide variety of symptoms. Mild heart disease can become asymptomatic, and a serious one that may be latent can appear suddenly.