Congenital heart defect corrective surgery

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Cardiac catheterization	Heart, front view	Heart, section through the middle	Patent ductus arteriosis (PDA) - series
Ultrasound, normal fetus - heartbeat	Ultrasound, normal fetus - heartbeat

Surgery to correct or treat birth defects of the heart (congenital heart disease) is required if the defects threaten the child's well-being or life.

Patent ductus arteriosus ligation; Hypoplastic left heart repair; Tetralogy of Fallot repair; Coarctation of the aorta repair; Heart surgery for children; Atrial septal defect repair; Ventricular septal defect repair; Truncus arteriosus repair; Total anomalous pulmonary artery correction; Transposition of great vessels repair; Tricuspid atresia repair; VSD repair; ASD repair; PDA ligation

Heart defects come in all types, from minor to major. Defects can occur inside the heart or in the large blood vessels outside the heart. The heart defect may need immediate surgery or may be able to safely wait for months or years. In most cases, the timing of the surgery will depend on how sick the baby is.

The heart defect may be repaired in a single surgical procedure or may require a series of procedures. Surgery may involve opening the heart to repair defects or repairing defects of the blood vessels.

An incision may be made through the breastbone (sternum) and between the lungs (mediastinum) while the child is under general anesthesia. For some heart defect repairs, the incision is made on the side of the chest, between the ribs (thoracotomy) instead of through the breastbone (sternotomy).

It is sometimes necessary to use tubes to re-route the blood through a special pump (heart-lung bypass machine) that adds oxygen to the blood and keeps it warm and moving through the rest of the body while the repair is being done. This machine does the work of the heart and lungs during the operation.

Heart surgery for children requires a specialized team of health care providers:

• Pediatric heart (cardiovascular) surgeons
• Pediatric anesthesiologists
• Pediatric heart-lung (cardiopulmonary) bypass pump technologists
• Pediatric surgical nurses and technicians
• Pediatric intensive care physicians and nurses

Heart surgery requires intensive and extensive monitoring, treatment and coordination by the entire team. Heart surgery for children may take as many as 12 hours in the operating room.