![]() However, it's important to do everything possible to have a healthy pregnancy. There is no known prevention for patent ductus arteriosus. If you are at high risk of having a baby with a heart problem present at birth, genetic testing and screening may be done during pregnancy. Together you can discuss and plan for any special care needed during pregnancy. Your health care provider may stop or change your medicines before you become pregnant. Some heart medicines can cause serious problems for a developing baby. However, having a large PDA or complications such as heart failure, irregular heartbeats or lung damage increases the risk of serious complications during pregnancy.īefore becoming pregnant, talk to your health care provider about possible pregnancy risks and complications. It may be possible to have a successful pregnancy with a small patent ductus arteriosus. ![]() A patent ductus arteriosus can increase the risk of infection of the heart tissue. Symptoms of this serious complication include rapid breathing, often with gasping breaths, and poor weight gain. A life-threatening and permanent type of lung damage called Eisenmenger syndrome may occur. Over time, the increased pressure damages the smaller blood vessels in the lungs. As a result, pressure rises in the pulmonary artery. A large PDA causes irregular blood flow in the heart and lungs. High blood pressure in the lungs, also called pulmonary hypertension.Patent ductus arteriosus is twice as common in girls.Ī small patent ductus arteriosus might not cause complications. Babies born above 8,200 feet (2,499 meters) have a greater risk of a PDA than babies born at lower altitudes. A vaccine is available for those who aren't immune. A blood test done before pregnancy can determine if you're immune to rubella. Having German measles, also called rubella, during pregnancy can cause problems in a baby's heart development. Babies born with an extra 21st chromosome, a condition called Down syndrome, also are more likely to have this condition. A family history of heart problems present at birth may increase the risk for a PDA. Family history and other genetic conditions.Patent ductus arteriosus occurs more commonly in babies who are born too early than in babies who are born full term. Risk factors for patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) include: The baby's heart might grow larger and get weak. Untreated, the blood pressure in the baby's lungs might increase. The persistent opening causes too much blood to flow to the baby's lungs and heart. ![]() ![]() ![]() When it stays open, it's called a patent ductus arteriosus. But in some infants, the opening doesn't close. The baby gets oxygen from the mother's blood.Īfter birth, the ductus arteriosus is no longer needed. It moves blood away from a baby's lungs while they develop. The opening is necessary for a baby's blood flow before birth. Those vessels are the aorta and the pulmonary artery. It's during this time that certain heart defects may begin to develop.īefore birth, a temporary opening called the ductus arteriosus is between the two main blood vessels leaving a baby's heart. The major blood vessels to and from the heart grow. During the first six weeks of pregnancy, a baby's heart starts to form and beat. The exact causes of congenital heart defects are unclear. ![]()
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