Heart Hole in Babies and Children, Symptoms and Treatment Methods

One of the most common congenital heart diseases is heart holes. Cardiac perforation in babies and children is a problem that occurs as a result of the wall between the atrium or the wall between the ventricles not completely closing in the womb. The hole between the atria is called Atrial Septal Defect (ASD), while the hole between the ventricles is called Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD). In both cases, clean blood from the left side of the heart passes to the right side and mixes with dirty blood, increasing the amount of blood going to the lungs. Therefore, heart holes can cause some lung problems and heart problems such as heart failure and heart enlargement. It is extremely important to diagnose the disease at an early stage and apply the necessary treatment.

Article Content

1. What is a Heart Hole?

2. Heart Hole Symptoms in Babies and Children

3. Diagnosis of Heart Hole in Babies and Children

4. Causes of Heart Hole in Babies and Children

5. Heart Hole Treatment Methods in Babies and Children

6. Heart Hole Surgery in Babies and Children

1. What is a Heart Hole?

Cardiac perforation is a congenital heart disease that occurs as a result of the wall between the atria or ventricles of the heart not closing completely. In a normal heart structure, the right side of the heart deals with dirty blood and the left side deals with clean blood, and clean blood and dirty blood do not mix. In heart hole disease, clean blood from the left side of the heart passes to the right side of the heart due to a hole in the atrium or ventricle. Therefore, clean blood mixes with dirty blood and the amount of blood sent to the lungs increases. Heart hole is a disease that, if left untreated, impairs the quality of life and can cause different problems. Sometimes it manifests itself with symptoms, and sometimes it can be noticed years later in adulthood without any symptoms.

2. Heart Hole Symptoms in Babies and Children

Symptoms of heart hole in newborn babies;

• Difficulty breathing
• bruising
• Difficulty while sucking, getting tired while sucking and trying to suckle by taking breaks
• excessive sweating
• Bruising on lips and fingers, extreme restlessness of the baby

Symptoms of heart hole in older children:

• Quick fatigue and fatigue while playing games
• pain in chest
• Frequent lung infections
• Slow growth and retardation
• In addition, hearing a heart murmur under the supervision of a doctor may also be a sign of an existing heart hole.

3. Diagnosis of Heart Hole in Babies and Children

Diagnosis of cardiac perforation in infants and children is made by echocardiography.

4. Causes of Heart Holes in Babies and Children

Cardiac perforation in infants and children occurs as a result of the incomplete closure of the interatrial wall or the interventricular wall in the womb.

5. Heart Hole in Babies and ChildrenDavi Methods

Cardiac perforation in babies and children is a disease that must be treated. Some holes may close spontaneously until the child is 2 years old. In some cases, the closure of these holes can be monitored through the observation process. In addition, heart holes can be closed with medication, non-surgical interventional methods or, if necessary, surgical intervention. Non-surgical heart hole treatment is based on the principle of accessing the heart by entering through the groin and closing the holes using a closing device. Another method used in open surgery is minimally invasive surgery. With the minimally invasive surgical technique, cardiac puncture surgery can be performed successfully through small incisions on the side of the chest and under the armpit, without splitting the chest in the middle and cutting the sternum. In this method, the heart is reached between the ribs and the procedure is performed without cutting the bone or damaging the tissues. With minimally invasive cardiac surgery, the heart hole is repaired with small interventions from the armpit, side of the chest or under the breast. They are sewn opposite each other or a new patch is made there and the hole is closed. After the necessary tests, analyzes and evaluations are carried out by the specialist physician, the most appropriate treatment method must be decided.

6. Heart Hole Surgery in Babies and Children

In cases where the heart hole cannot be treated with medication or non-surgical methods, heart hole surgery, that is, surgical intervention, can be used. Heart holes can be successfully closed and treated with minimally invasive surgery, also known as the closed method among the public. With minimally invasive cardiac surgery, the heart hole is repaired with small interventions from the armpit, side of the chest or under the breast. They are sewn opposite each other or a new patch is made there and the hole is closed.