Atrial Septal Defect
By: Robert NamTotal Views: 196, Word Count: 782,
What is Atrial Septal Defect?
The normal heart is divided in two parts, left chamber and right chamber. A muscular wall called septum separates both the chambers. Each side of the heart is further divided into two parts, atrium (upper chamber) and ventricle (lower chamber).
Atrial septal defect is from birth itself (congenital heart defect). This defect occurs due to the opening in atrial septum. The dividing wall of the two, upper and lower chamber is known as a right and left atria.
Atrial septal defect allows red blood to pass from the left atrium, through the opening in the septum which gets mixed with the oxygen deficient blood (blue) in the right atrium. An ostium secundum is the common type of atrial septal defect that opens in the middle of atrial septum.
Causes of Atrial Septal Defect
Atrial septal defect originates during the fetal development of heart and remains present from the time of birth. In the first week of conception, a baby’s heart begins to develop. During this process, if any problem occurs then it might result in atrial septum.
In some cases, development of ASD can be genetic. Genetic syndrome can cause an extra piece of chromosome associated with ASD. There is no clear reason behind the ASD in teenagers.
Symptoms of Atrial Septal Defect
Children hardly have any symptoms related to this defect. Each child may experience different symptom. If the defect is large, then the following symptoms can be noticed in atrial septal defect.
- Child getting tired while playing or exercising
- Sweating
- Rapid rate of breathing
- Fatigue
- Frequent respiratory infections
- Poor growth/unhealthy
- Shortness of breath
Risk Factors for Atrial Septal Defects
Atrial septal defect is not a very common defect. However, person with ASD defect are at a very high risk of developing complications like.
- Pulmonary over circulation
- Stroke
- Pulmonary hypertension
- Heart failure
- Atrial fibrillation(in adults)
Diagnosis for the Atrial Septal Defect
ASD is hardly diagnosed at the early stages. At times the heart murmurs are not very loud and might be difficult to hear. It can be diagnosed at any stage of life. After diagnosis, if the doctor suspects any detection for the atrial septal defect, then he recommends the following tests.
- X-Ray- Chest x-ray is a good option to diagnose atrial septal defect. It produces the image of heart along with the surrounded organs.
- Electrocardiogram (EKG) – It is used to record the electrical activity of the heart. It indicates the amount of extra pressure on the right side of the heart.
- Echocardiogram (Echo) - It uses a sound wave to produce the image of the heart. It also visualizes the flow of blood through the heart chambers. This is one of the primary and ideal tools that are used to diagnose ASD.
Treatment for atrial septal defect
Specific treatment of ASD depends on your child’s physician and is based on,
- Age, health and medical history
- Diseases
- Tolerance of specific medication or therapies
- Opinion or preference.
The treatment of atrial septal defect also depends on the size of defect. Treatment includes.
- Medication – (Digoxin and diuretics)
- Control over the infection
- Cardiac Catheterization
- Surgical treatment
It can be scary to visit the doctor for the diagnosis of ASD. However, nowaday’s doctors are more familiar with this defect and have adequate knowledge to cure it. Children suffering from atrial septal defect can be cured.
About the Author
Dr. Robert Nam is a well known heart specialist and has done postgraduate training in cardiology at the national heart hospital, the London chest hospital and UCL hospital, London. He was also engaged in research at the national heart and lung institute. Nowadays he is working as a consultant cardiologist at UCL hospital, London.
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