Congenital heart defects or heart diseases afflict or are present in infants under the age of one year. These heart diseases are caused by problems or malformations in the structure and function of the heart and its vessels, resulting in mild to...
According to 2008 information from the March of Dimes, approximately 1 out of every 125 babies is born with a congenital heart defect. These can range from very mild, producing no symptoms, to very serious, leading to death. However, most babies...
The heart can be described as the muscle pump of the body. A congenital heart problem can arise when there is abnormal heart development that happens in utero, before birth. The American Heart Association (AHA) states that annually approximately...
Eight out of every 1,000 infants is born with a congenital cardiac disease, according to Henry Sondheimer, M.D., professor emeritus at the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine. One way to classify these diseases is by whether or not...
An echocardiogram is a test that examines the internal structures of the heart. It is a painless procedure, which uses a probe that emits sound waves into the chest. These sound waves are high-frequency and bounce off internal structures, giving...
Many different kinds of cardiac disorders occur in children, but they can be classified into two main groups, according to The Children's Hospital-Denver. In congenital disorders, the child was born with the problem. In acquired disorders, the...
Congenital heart disease refers to any structural abnormalities of the heart that are due to inherited defects, including valve defects, patent foramen ovale (PFO) and Tetralogy of Fallot. Some congenital heart diseases have little or no...
Children are surprisingly susceptible to circulatory diseases. Thousands of infants are born each year with defects in their cardiovascular or circulatory system. Many other children get diseases of the heart as they age. A completely normal heart...
Although most children are born with normal hearts, some babies are born with congenital heart defects that can cause cardiac dysfunction. These defects are usually detected during the newborn period, but some children have only mild symptoms that...
Blue baby syndrome is a condition characterized by the bluish discoloration of the skin seen in newborns. Blue baby syndrome manifests as soon as the child is born or within the first few days of life. This syndrome is usually caused by a group of...
Ventricular fibrillation is a life-threatening condition in which the heart loses its normal rhythm and quivers uncontrollably. In ventricular fibrillation, the heart is no longer able to pump blood out of the lower chambers or ventricles....
There are numerous causes of an irregular heart rate, or arrhythmia. According to MedlinePlus, an arrhythmia is any disorder that involves heart rate or rhythm, and may involve a heart rate that's too fast or too slow, or a heart rate that has an...
Skin color results from the blood flow in the tiny vessels within the skin as well as the amount of pigment present in the dermal layers. Any number of normal conditions can alter the pigmentation of the skin, but only abnormal causes result in...
Congenital heart disease involves one or more structural defects of the heart or blood vessels, according to the Cleveland Clinic. It occurs before birth as a fetus develops. Congenital heart disease affects approximately eight to 10 out of every...
Congenital heart diseases occur due to abnormal heart development before a child is born. According to Medline Plus, a website of the National Institutes of Health, congenital heart disease is the most common type of birth defect and is...
Though the term "heart disease" often brings to mind adult disease, children are also susceptible to health conditions that can adversely affect the heart. Although a few of these conditions are benign and can exist in a healthy child, many are...
Newborn heart problems are more common than you would expect. According to the American Heart Association, nine out of every 1,000 babies in the United States are born with a congenital heart defect. Although most congenital heart defects are...
With today's awareness about heart disease, most savvy consumers have learned the basics about what they can do to prevent a heart attack. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 652,000 men and women died in 2005...
