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Congenital heart disease
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Congenital heart disease is a defect in the structure of the heart or of the great vessels of the chest, the large tubes that carry blood through the chest, and it forms while the baby is developing in the womb.
The heart has a left side and a right side separated by a wall, the septum. Picture a house with two rooms that are not supposed to connect: if that wall is left with an opening, which is called a septal defect, blood can pass from one room to the other where it should not. Other defects can make blood move too slowly or get blocked, like a clogged pipe.
The most severe ones are called critical congenital heart disease. While the baby is in the womb they are silent, because oxygen-rich blood reaches the baby from the placenta, and either of two bypasses in its circulation, the foramen ovale or the ductus arteriosus, can increase blood flow to the body. After birth those bypasses close, and that is when most of these defects start to cause symptoms.
In brief
Congenital heart disease is a structural abnormality of the heart or great vessels in the chest that forms during fetal development.
It can make blood flow too slowly, go where it should not, or become blocked; a septal defect is an opening in the wall between the left and right sides.
Critical defects, the most severe, are silent in the fetus because it receives oxygenated blood from the placenta and the foramen ovale or ductus arteriosus can increase flow to the body; once both close after birth, most cause symptoms.
Sources (2)
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingCyanotic Heart Disease, StatPearlsPublished
- MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of MedicineCongenital Heart Defects, MedlinePlus Health TopicPublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
Updated