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Showing posts from October, 2022

Surgical and Non-Surgical Treatments for Congenital Heart Disease in Infants

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-Contributed by Navaneeth R Congenital heart disease (CHD) refers to structural and functional abnormalities in the heart present at birth. It is one of the most frequently diagnosed congenital disorders, affecting nearly 1.3% of newborns worldwide. The children born with CHD face significant challenges as the conditions often pose substantial risk for their life. The advancements in the medical field have enabled us to effectively manage these children, ensure their survival and improve their quality of life as they grow up.  Congenital heart defects in infants include numerous disorders ranging from minor defects to complex, challenging conditions. While some of these which are minor resolve spontaneously on their own, others require surgical or non-surgical interventions. Even for those who do not require any treatment, long term monitoring and routine cardiac evaluation is a must. Non-Surgical Treatment for CHD All patients with CHD do not require open heart surgeries. Some c...

The importance of new-born screening in Congenital Heart Defects

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Congenital Heart Defect (CHDs) are structural abnormalities of the heart present at the time of birth of a child.   CHDs are the most common cause of death due to congenital anomalies in the developed world. Although CHD include a wide spectrum of conditions, they can broadly be classified into critical CHD and non-critical CHD. Critical CHDs are those defects where failure to identify the condition within the first month after birth could potentially result in death or a significant disability. The critical CHDs include Pulmonary atresia, Severe Pulmonary stenosis or atresia, Hypoplastic left heart syndrome, Aortic stenosis, Transposition of Great arteries, Obstructed total anomalous pulmonary venous drainage and Severe coarctation. Timely diagnosis is critical to the effective treatment forcongenital heart defects . However, the clinical recognition of CHD in the newborn period is often challenging. This is because the symptom...