Congenital Heart Disease
Congenital heart disease is the name given to defects in the heart which are present at birth. Any part of the heart may be affected - the valves, the chambers, the tissues separating the chambers (called septa) or the vessels. If the defect allows de-oxygenated blood to enter the circulation, causing the child to appear blue, or cyanosed, then it is called congenital cyanotic heart disease. Many defects do not seriously impinge on the life or development of the infant: if the valve between the left ventricle and the aorta - the aortic valve - has only two leaves instead of three (and is therefore called bicuspid), then all it means is that there’s a heart murmur and the child needs antibiotics before any surgical procedure to prevent the development of infective endocarditis.
Major defects, however, such as where there’s transposition of the great arteries - so that the aorta arises from the right ventricle and the pulmonary artery from the left can cause death in the first week of life if untreated. Most cases of congenital heart disease arise out of the blue, but they may be associated with other disorders, such as Down’s syndrome, intra-uterine infection with viruses such as Rubella, or exposure to toxins during pregnancy - as in the foetal alcohol syndrome.
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