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This isn't intended for DIYers to try themselves. I wanted people to know a little about congenital heart defects. According to the March of Dimes, congenital heart defects are the #1 birth defect, and over 25,000 babies are born each year with heart defects in the United States alone.
Hypoplastic right heart syndrome a rare and severe type of congenital heart defect; its causes are unknown. HRHS refers to underdeveloped right side structures of the heart. The right side of the heart, which is supposed to pump blood to the lungs, is too small to function; in practical terms, babies with HRHS have only half of a functioning heart.
Hypoplastic left heart syndrome or HLHS, while still rare, is more common than HRHS. The treatments are almost the same.
Every heart defect is pretty unique with its own set of complications. This instructable will give a general idea of the process commonly used to treat a heart with only one usable ventricle.
Hypoplastic right heart syndrome a rare and severe type of congenital heart defect; its causes are unknown. HRHS refers to underdeveloped right side structures of the heart. The right side of the heart, which is supposed to pump blood to the lungs, is too small to function; in practical terms, babies with HRHS have only half of a functioning heart.
Hypoplastic left heart syndrome or HLHS, while still rare, is more common than HRHS. The treatments are almost the same.
Every heart defect is pretty unique with its own set of complications. This instructable will give a general idea of the process commonly used to treat a heart with only one usable ventricle.
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Signing UpStep 1How the heart works
You should know this if you paid attention in 7th grade science class. I've included this review in case you were daydreaming or simply forgot. 12 years old is a long time ago for some of us. You'll notice red and blue in the pictures I drew for this instructable. The red represents oxygenated blood and the blue represents deoxygenated blood. Deoxygenated blood isn't actually blue. It's a darker purplish red color that sometimes looks bluish when viewed through our skin.
Veins are blood vessels that carry blood to the heart, and the vena cava is a very large vein that the other veins from the body connect to; it has an upper and a lower portion, called superior vena cava and inferior vena cava, respectively. Veins have one way valves that prevent the blood from backing up and pooling. Blood is pushed through veins by more blood behind it, and also partially by muscles squishing veins during normal human movement.
In a healthy mature heart, blood enters a chamber called the right atrium from the vena cava. The atrium contracts to squish blood through a valve into the right ventricle. The valve keeps blood from flowing back from the ventricle into the atrium. The atrium is smaller than the ventricle because it doesn't need to pump the blood as far, so it doesn't need as much muscle tissue to move the blood forcefully. If you threw a ball ten feet, you wouldn't have to use as much force as if you threw it fifty feet.
The right ventricle pumps the blood through the pulmonary artery to the lungs. Pulmonary means "of or pertaining to the lungs" and an artery is a vessel that carries blood away from the heart, so pulmonary artery means "blood vessel that carries blood from the heart to the lungs." Once in the lungs, the blood picks up oxygen and drops off carbon dioxide. All of our cells need oxygen in order to survive and produce carbon dioxide as a waste product.
The newly oxygenated blood returns to the heart through the pulmonary veins. If we remember what pulmonary means and what vein means, we know that pulmonary veins are blood vessels that carry blood to the lungs to the heart. The blood enters the left atrium, which contracts to squish it through a valve into the left ventricle. The left ventricle then contracts to pump the blood through the aorta. The aorta is the huge artery that carries oxygenated blood away from the heart to the body. It branches into lots of arteries, which get smaller and smaller until they end in tiny capillaries. Capillaries are tiny little blood vessels. The blood carries oxygen to the cells, picks up carbon dioxide, then flows back to the heart through veins.
Veins are blood vessels that carry blood to the heart, and the vena cava is a very large vein that the other veins from the body connect to; it has an upper and a lower portion, called superior vena cava and inferior vena cava, respectively. Veins have one way valves that prevent the blood from backing up and pooling. Blood is pushed through veins by more blood behind it, and also partially by muscles squishing veins during normal human movement.
In a healthy mature heart, blood enters a chamber called the right atrium from the vena cava. The atrium contracts to squish blood through a valve into the right ventricle. The valve keeps blood from flowing back from the ventricle into the atrium. The atrium is smaller than the ventricle because it doesn't need to pump the blood as far, so it doesn't need as much muscle tissue to move the blood forcefully. If you threw a ball ten feet, you wouldn't have to use as much force as if you threw it fifty feet.
The right ventricle pumps the blood through the pulmonary artery to the lungs. Pulmonary means "of or pertaining to the lungs" and an artery is a vessel that carries blood away from the heart, so pulmonary artery means "blood vessel that carries blood from the heart to the lungs." Once in the lungs, the blood picks up oxygen and drops off carbon dioxide. All of our cells need oxygen in order to survive and produce carbon dioxide as a waste product.
The newly oxygenated blood returns to the heart through the pulmonary veins. If we remember what pulmonary means and what vein means, we know that pulmonary veins are blood vessels that carry blood to the lungs to the heart. The blood enters the left atrium, which contracts to squish it through a valve into the left ventricle. The left ventricle then contracts to pump the blood through the aorta. The aorta is the huge artery that carries oxygenated blood away from the heart to the body. It branches into lots of arteries, which get smaller and smaller until they end in tiny capillaries. Capillaries are tiny little blood vessels. The blood carries oxygen to the cells, picks up carbon dioxide, then flows back to the heart through veins.
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Abigail says "I love you" by gazing into my eyes intently, touching my cheek, then grinning suddenly and shoving her fingers in my mouth and giggling at my reaction.
She doesn't crawl but wiggles to get where she wants to go. If she feels like being naughty, she bites a hole in her feeding tube or scoots close to a sibling to kick them or drops toys off her bean bag or walker tray, or acts like she's about to chew on a cord, or grabs my phone... She always makes me laugh.
I might have missed it, but I'm curious, since our son had one for a different condition: Why is the G-tube necessary? Is it a temporary measure while she learns to eat again?
I'm glad Abigail is doing well. Take care.
The ENT doctor who looked at her throat said it was going to be permanently paralyzed, but that the body adapts and babies learn to contract other muscles to keep from aspirating. She passed her latest swallow study over a year ago and can swallow liquid if she wants. I have no idea whether or not some nerve function recovered in her left vocal cord. We were told it wouldn't, but boy she sure can holler loudly when she wants, and there's no trace of her former raspiness.
She's on the autism spectrum and has some sensory aversions. It's hard to tell which are autism and which stem from her heart interventions/hospital experiences. She's extremely stubborn and will sometimes taste things she likes, but she refuses to eat or drink. We're still working closely with her wonderful therapists.
very cute cute ...
I wish you health and happiness (>';'<)