Patient's Complete Guide to Cyanotic Heart Disease

Several birth defects can lead to these diseases. Some of these are:

• Problems with the heart valves

• Valves are basically like the flaps. They direct the blood flow in the right direction. Issues with valves might include:
• The tricuspid valve may not be present or does not open wide enough
• The pulmonary valve may not be present or does not open wide enough
• Blockage/ Interruption in the aorta
• Aorta is the largest artery in the body. Interruption in the aorta can also cause cyanotic heart diseases.

• Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF)

TOF is the combination of four different defects. These are:

• A narrow pulmonary valve
• A hole between the right and left ventricle
• Thickening of ventricle muscles
• Mispositioned aortic valve

• Transposition of the great arteries (TGA)

Infants who have TGA, their pulmonary and aortic vein gets switched with arteries. This causes a low oxygenated blood supply to the rest of the body through the aorta. When this blood should be going to the lungs through the pulmonary artery.

• Tricuspid atresia

 In this condition, the tricuspid valve does not function properly or is missing entirely. This results in low oxygenated blood throughout the body.

• Total anomalous pulmonary venous connection (TAPVC

In this condition, the veins that are responsible for carrying the oxygen-enriched blood from the lungs to the heart are connected to the right atrium when instead they should be connected to the right atrium.

Some issues that can cause Cyanotic Heart Diseases to include:

• Chemical exposure
• Consumption of drugs during pregnancy
• Syndromes like down syndrome, Turner syndrome, etc.
• Infections during pregnancy
• Side effects of some medicines used during pregnancy
• Highly elevated or dropped levels of sugar in women who have diabetes during pregnancy
• Thickening of wall of the right ventricle
• A narrow pulmonary valve