Atrail Septal Defect Treatment

An opening between the upper heart chambers exists at birth in every child. A typical fetal hole permits blood to divert away from the lungs prior to birth. The aperture becomes unnecessary after delivery and typically closes or shrinks within a few weeks or months.

Atrial septal defect (ASD) occurs as the baby's heart is developing during pregnancy. Certain health conditions or drug use during pregnancy may increase a baby's risk of atrial septal defect or other congenital heart defect.

The right side of the heart only normally pumps blood to the lungs, while the left side only pumps blood to the body. Blood can pass through the opening between the left upper heart chamber (left atrium) and the right upper chamber (right atrium) in a child with ASD and exit into the lung arteries.

Atrial septal defect (ASD) is a congenital heart defect where there is a hole in the wall that separates the upper two chambers of the heart. If the hole is large, it can cause blood to flow from the left atrium to the right atrium, increasing the workload of the right side of the heart. If left untreated, this can lead to heart failure, pulmonary hypertension, and other complications. ASD may alone or as an associated congenital cardiac defect. Atrioventricular conduction defects, ventricular septal defect, tetralogy of Fallot, and a variety of complex cyanotic congenital heart disease defects have occurred with ASD. 

Here are the general steps involved in the surgical procedure to repair an ASD:

There are two approaches to ASD closure:

• Open heart surgery- Patients with sinus venous ASD and ostium primum need surgery, and it is advised to have it done in early childhood. Larger lesions require patches composed of synthetic material or pericardium (the heart's lining), whereas smaller defects are fixed with sutures.
• Catheter-based closure- Catheter-based ASD closure is an option for patients with secundum ASD. The septal occluder is delivered into the atrial septal region using the femoral artery and/or vein access. Septal occluder devices come in different sizes. Devices are selected based on their appropriate size for the ASD. The flexible wire used to manufacture the occluder device contains titanium and nickel (nitinol). Echocardiography is typically used to evaluate the success of catheter device closure both during and after catheter-ASD closure. It is capable of detecting persisting interatrial shunting.