Congenital Heart Disease: Its Causes and Treatment

Congenital Heart Disease

Heart disease is traditionally a disease that people develop later in life. There are, however, 1 out of 100 babies born with the disease. Referred to as congenital heart disease (CHD), this condition is a realization for about 1,000,000 adults in the United States.

The good news about congenital heart disease is that more than half of the people who have the disease are diagnosed at the time of birth. This is good news because a treatment plan can be put into place immediately. It is very possible for a person to live many years with heart disease and not know it. When this happens, the individual may consume foods and beverages that can worsen the condition, and they might not take care of themselves.

The number of deaths for congenital cardiovascular defects has gone down over the years as medical treatment has improved. According to data from the American Heart Association: Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics – 2004 Update; from 1991 to 2001, death rates for congenital cardiovascular defects declined 28.6%, and actual number of deaths declined 26.4%. There are about 2200 children that die each year from congenital cardiovascular defects.

Defining Congenital Heart Disease

CHD is a general reference to any heart, valve, or blood vessel defect. With the numerous tests that an expectant mother undergoes, you would think that a doctor would be able to diagnose CHD before the mother gave birth. Congenital heart defects are the most common type of major birth defect.

Two issues make CHD diagnosis difficult when the baby is in the wound: the baby’s heart being not fully developed and the mother’s oxygenated blood that flows to the placenta keeping the baby’s heart functioning properly. Once the baby is born, their heart has to function on its own. It is at this time that a doctor is able to make a diagnosis.

Congenital Heart Disease Causes

CHD or congenital heart defect is a heart problem that is present at birth. It is caused by improper development of the heart during the baby’s fetal development. In most cases when a baby is born with congenital heart disease, there is no specific reason for the heart to have formed improperly. This is in about 85 to 90 percent of cases. These babies CHD condition is caused by many factors. The factors are usually both genetic and environmental.

For those ten to fifteen percent of the other babies born with congenital heart disease scientists know that some types of congenital heart defects can be related to an infant’s chromosomes (5 to 6 percent) being abnormal, single gene defects (3 to 5 percent), or due to environmental factors (2 percent).

Treating CHD

Previous to the last 10 years or so, congenital heart disease was synonymous with experiencing an early death. With the advancements in science and technology, individuals diagnosed with CHD have a better chance of living a long and enjoyable life. The most common treatment plan for CHD is to place the individual on medication and/or perform surgery. Since very young children are the people who are generally diagnosed with CHD, parents may be concerned about the possible side effects associated with these medications, as well as the high-risk nature of open-heart surgery.

Now there are catheters that help cardiologists to repair certain types of heart valve damage, a common symptom of CHD. These procedures are less invasive than traditional surgical techniques. Although these procedures are less dangerous than open-heart surgery, the traditional CHD treatment method, the procedures are not without risk. In addition to the common risks associated with any medical procedure, such as infection and blood clots, there is the risk of the catheter becoming damaged after the procedure and causing complications.

Your child will need to regularly visit a pediatric cardiologist after treatment, whether they were treated surgically or medically. Initially the appointments may be fairly frequent, but if everything is progressing as expected, they may be cut back, sometimes to just once a year. The cardiologist may use tools like X-rays, echocardiograms, or electrocardiograms, to monitor the defect and the effects after treatment.

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