Studies show one out of every 100 babies is born with a heart defect. Health experts say there are ways to screen the baby’s heart while the mom is still pregnant.
Michelle Bierig, system director of cardiovascular services at Lee Health, says ultrasounds are used to determine the baby’s sex, but during pregnancy they are also used to make sure the baby’s development is on track. “The resolution that we have today is amazing and really has the ability to see the details that we weren’t able to see before.”
During an ultrasound experts pay close attention to the baby’s heart. “We look at the two main arteries that come out of the heart. We look at a couple of the other structures around the heart to see if there are any abnormalities. Are all four chambers of the heart there? Are the valves normal? Is the plumbing normal? Is everything connected in the way that it should be,” said Bierig.
If the baby shows any heart abnormalities in the ultrasound, doctors may take a closer look using a fetal echocardiogram. This allows the doctor to get a closer look at the baby’s heart structure. “There are a couple of different stages within the pregnancy that we can see both abnormality and then there’s a typically an evaluation done of the whole baby. Typically the evaluations are done around 20 weeks,” said Bierig.
If doctors find any problems in the baby’s heart they will monitor the pregnancy closely until the baby is born. “Depending on what the abnormality is, depends on what the type of treatment will be. There’s a lot of kids that we’re keeping here because we have the ability to keep them here and treat them here,” said Bierig.
The baby is monitored closely in the hospital after birth. Sometimes after delivery the baby’s heart can heal on its own. Other times, surgery is needed. The sooner health experts can find the problem during pregnancy, the better outcome for the baby.
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