Congenital heart disease is one of the most common congenital anomalies in children, a congenital disease that can bring great harm to the whole family, making people welcome new life and at the same time bear the threat of losing it at any time, bringing great misfortune and a deep burden to the family and society. Almost every year, 7 to 11 per cent of babies born in China are born with congenital cardiovascular anomalies, most of which are ventricular and atrial septal defects, patent ductus arteriosus, pulmonary valve, aortic valve stenosis, tetralogy of Fallot, and large vessel misalignment.
Most children are diagnosed early due to heart murmurs detected at birth physical examination, and some are diagnosed early due to symptoms such as cyanosis and dyspnea. Approximately half of all children with precordial disease die within the first year of life due to severe cardiac malformations. Survivors develop recurrent respiratory infections and developmental disorders at all ages of their growth and development.
So what are the main causes of congenital heart disease?
1, genetic factors.
Congenital heart disease is not a hereditary disease, but it is quite common for some families to have siblings with congenital heart disease at the same time, or parents and children with congenital heart disease at the same time, and the nature of the disease is very similar. Generally speaking, if one of the first degree relatives has congenital heart disease, the chance of the others having the disease increases three times, if two members have the disease, the chance increases to 9%, and if three members have the disease, the chance of the others having congenital heart disease increases to 50%.
If the first child born to a mother with congenital heart disease, the likelihood of the second child having the disease is about 2%; if two consecutive children are born with congenital heart disease, the likelihood of having another child with congenital heart disease increases to 10%. The risk of the second generation having congenital heart disease is 10% if the mother has congenital heart disease. 5% of congenital heart disease patients occur in the same family and their disease is the same or similar probably due to genetic abnormalities or chromosomal aberrations. This is the main cause of congenital heart disease.
In trisomy 21, for example, about 50% of patients with this disease have congenital heart disease, with endocardial cushion defect and ventricular septal defect accounting for 32% and 29%, respectively, followed by atrial septal defect accounting for 11%, tetralogy of Fallot accounting for 7.9%, and end ductus arteriosus accounting for 6.7%. Most of the pure atrial septal defect, ventricular septal defect, endarterectomy and tetralogy of Fallot showed polygenic pattern, and the risk rate of reoccurrence of siblings and children of the first patients was about 4%.
2. Environmental factors.
The environment in which the pregnant woman is living before and during pregnancy, including the living and working environment. Environmental factors include chemical factors and physical factors. Chemical factors are mainly long-term exposure to harmful chemicals, including benzene, sulfur dioxide and other harmful gases and heavy metals such as mercury and cadmium. Therefore, pregnant women should avoid living in newly renovated houses, as well as avoiding exposure to chemical factors and strengthening protection. Physical factors are mainly radiation, because radiation has a pathogenic effect on human body and a teratogenic effect on fetus.
In addition to ionizing radiation; cell phones, computers and other radiation on the impact of precocious heart disease is also gradually attracted the attention of the industry. Recently, a survey in Shanghai, also included ionizing radiation in the top 10 factors that induce precocious heart disease. Fetal surroundings factors: amniotic membrane lesions, mechanical compression around the fetus, maternal nutritional disorders, vitamin deficiencies and metabolic diseases maternal with cytotoxic drugs may be related to the causes of congenital heart disease.
3, disease drug factors.
According to some analysis results from medical studies, drugs and disease factors are high risk factors for congenital heart disease in children. Therefore, mothers should try to avoid drugs and disable high-risk drugs during pregnancy, especially in early pregnancy. This should be the main measure for primary prevention of congenital heart disease. The mother should also avoid colds and bacterial and viral infections such as rubella and measles in early pregnancy, because bacterial and viral infections can also lead to malformations in fetal development and cause congenital heart disease.
Influence of drugs: It mainly includes the mother’s alcoholism or exposure to teratogenic drugs such as lithium, phenytoin sodium, aspirin or tetracyclines, steroids, etc. in early pregnancy, which can lead to an increased prevalence of congenital heart disease in the fetus.
Effects of disease: Women who are infected with viruses during the first 3 months of pregnancy, especially from 3 weeks to 8 weeks of pregnancy, are prone to fetal cardiovascular malformations. The rubella virus is the main culprit of fetal precocious heart disease. In utero viral infections in early pregnancy, rubella virus infection is commonly seen to cause ductus arteriosus and pulmonary artery stenosis. This is followed by coxsackievirus infection (Coxsakie), which can cause endocardial elastosis. In addition, influenza, mumps, and herpes viruses are often causative factors for pediatric precordial disease.
In addition, pregnant women with FK3 who have untreated and uncontrolled disease can also cause congenital heart disease in the fetus, but if the disease is controlled and stable early in pregnancy, the risk decreases. This is also one of the triggering causes of congenital heart disease.
4.Inbreeding.
Inbreeding is a high risk factor for fetal malformation and congenital heart disease. This is one of the predisposing causes of congenital heart disease.
5, bad hobbies.
Pregnant women are addicted to “swallowing fog” or husband smoking, wife “passive smoking” can make fetal malformation or pediatric precocious heart disease. The incidence of precocious heart disease in infants is two times higher in babies born to mothers who smoke than to mothers who do not smoke. Couples conceive after drinking, will make the fetus chromosomal abnormalities, born with alcoholism infants, most of which are accompanied by cardiovascular abnormalities.
6. Abnormal calcium concentration.
Every year in Japan, about 1% of newborns will have some kind of heart abnormality, and 10% of miscarriages are caused by fetal congenital heart disease. Experts say that because the generation of ventricular walls and valve cells require the participation of calcium ions, and abnormalities in the calcium concentration in the cells can lead to the inability of calcium ions to function properly.
7. Advanced maternal age.
Women who are over 35 years of age or older in pregnancy belong to advanced maternal age, and studies have shown that the possibility of congenital heart disease is high in women of advanced age carrying children.
8, Other.
In highland areas, the incidence of patent ductus arteriosus and atrial septal defect is higher. It suggests that the cause of congenital heart disease may be related to hypoxia. The prevalence of congenital heart disease in artificially assisted reproduction fetuses is three times higher than in normals. Some congenital heart diseases are gender predisposed.
These are the main causes of congenital heart disease, and I hope they will be helpful to you. Once suffering from congenital heart disease must go to the hospital in time for examination and diagnosis, so as not to delay the disease and cause more serious harm to patients.
For genetic factors, parents who have a family history of genetic diseases should try to rule out the possibility of congenital heart disease in their fetus through chromosome examination and genetic gene examination during pregnancy and fetal heart ultrasound examination; in addition, to prevent the occurrence of congenital heart disease pregnant women should avoid living in newly renovated houses, avoid contact with chemical poisons; avoid contact with radioactive substances, avoid living in an environment with strong electromagnetic waves In addition, to prevent the occurrence of congenital heart disease, pregnant women should avoid living in newly renovated houses; avoid contact with radioactive substances and live in environments with strong electromagnetic waves; avoid using drugs and prohibit high-risk drugs.