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Cyanotic heart disease - Prevention

Alternative Names

Right-to-left cardiac shunt; Right-to-left circulatory shunt

Prevention:

Avoid the use of alcohol and other drugs during pregnancy. Women who are (or think they might be) pregnant should notify their doctor before receiving prescriptions for medications. Women with manic-depressive disorder should consult their health care provider about the risks and benefits of various treatments for this condition during pregnancy.

The immune status for rubella should be evaluated early in the pregnancy. If the mother is not immune she must avoid any possible exposure to rubella and should be immunized immediately following delivery. Genetic counseling may be helpful if there is a family history of genetic disorders associated with congenital heart disease.

Heart, section through the middle

Heart, front view

Cyanotic heart disease

Reviewed last on: 12/10/2007
David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.; and Mark A Fogel, MD, FACC, FAAP, Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Radiology, Director of Cardiac MR, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

References

Zipes DP, Libby P, Bonow RO, Braunwald E, eds. Braunwald's Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine, 8th ed. St. Louis, Mo; WB Saunders; 2007.

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