Tetralogy of fallot
ACCORDING to Wikipedia, Tetralogy of Fallot is a congenital heart defect meaning that children are born with the abnormality in their hearts.
ACCORDING to Wikipedia, Tetralogy of Fallot is a congenital heart defect meaning that children are born with the abnormality in their hearts.
Causes of Tetralogy of Fallot
The cause of most cases of Tetralogy of Fallot is unknown though the hereditary factor may play a role, according to the Internet encyclopedia of science. In rare cases, experts say, more than one child in a family is born with a congenital heart defect. A baby’s heart begins to form shortly after conception and is complete by the end of the second month of pregnancy. During this time, Tetralogy of Fallot can occur and sometimes be detected during pregnancy.
Symptoms
The primary symptom of Tetralogy of Fallot is low blood oxygen saturation within the body. In some cases like Nansubuga’s, oxygenated blood mixes with de-oxygenated blood, according to Dr. Mworozi. Other symptoms include a heart murmur which may lead to difficulty in feeding, failure to gain weight and reduced immunity.
Prevalence of Tetralogy of Fallot
Dr. Omagino says it is one of the most common heart complications among children. Adding that many children die of the complication if not detected early.
Although the national survey of the prevalence of Tetralogy of Fallot has not been done, Dr. Peter Lwabi, a consultant paediatric cardiologist at Mulago Hospital says eight children per every 1000 births are diagnosed with congenital defects. Lwabi says Mulago recorded 600 new cases of children with congenital defects last year.
Emergency management
Prior to corrective surgery, children with Tetralogy of Fallot may be prone to consequential acute hypoxia (condition when the body or part of it is deprived of adequate oxygen supply) characterised by the blue baby syndrome and convulsions.
Oxygen is also effective in treating spells because it increases blood pressure as more blood flows to the lungs to get oxygenated.
For growing children, there are also simple procedures such as squatting in the knee-chest position which increases pressure on the left side of the heart and decreases the amount of deoxygenated blood entering the systemic circulation.
Treatment
Tetralogy of Fallot must be repaired with open-heart surgery, either soon after birth or later in infancy, according to Mworozi. Once the disease has been diagnosed, drugs can only prolong one’s life for sometime.
Causes of Tetralogy of Fallot
The cause of most cases of Tetralogy of Fallot is unknown though the hereditary factor may play a role, according to the Internet encyclopedia of science. In rare cases, experts say, more than one child in a family is born with a congenital heart defect. A baby’s heart begins to form shortly after conception and is complete by the end of the second month of pregnancy. During this time, Tetralogy of Fallot can occur and sometimes be detected during pregnancy.
Symptoms
The primary symptom of Tetralogy of Fallot is low blood oxygen saturation within the body. In some cases like Nansubuga’s, oxygenated blood mixes with de-oxygenated blood, according to Dr. Mworozi. Other symptoms include a heart murmur which may lead to difficulty in feeding, failure to gain weight and reduced immunity.
Prevalence of Tetralogy of Fallot
Dr. Omagino says it is one of the most common heart complications among children. Adding that many children die of the complication if not detected early.
Although the national survey of the prevalence of Tetralogy of Fallot has not been done, Dr. Peter Lwabi, a consultant paediatric cardiologist at Mulago Hospital says eight children per every 1000 births are diagnosed with congenital defects. Lwabi says Mulago recorded 600 new cases of children with congenital defects last year.
Emergency management
Prior to corrective surgery, children with Tetralogy of Fallot may be prone to consequential acute hypoxia (condition when the body or part of it is deprived of adequate oxygen supply) characterised by the blue baby syndrome and convulsions.
Oxygen is also effective in treating spells because it increases blood pressure as more blood flows to the lungs to get oxygenated.
For growing children, there are also simple procedures such as squatting in the knee-chest position which increases pressure on the left side of the heart and decreases the amount of deoxygenated blood entering the systemic circulation.
Treatment
Tetralogy of Fallot must be repaired with open-heart surgery, either soon after birth or later in infancy, according to Mworozi. Once the disease has been diagnosed, drugs can only prolong one’s life for sometime.