Fetal echocardiography - Risks

What the risks are:

There are no known risks to the mother or unborn baby.

Special considerations:

Some heart defects cannot be seen before birth, even with fetal echocardiography. These include small holes in the heart or mild valve problems. Sometimes it may not be possible to see every part of the large blood vessels leading out of the baby's heart.

If the health care provider finds a problem in the structure of the heart, a detailed ultrasound may be done to look for other problems with the developing baby.

Reviewed last on: 2/15/2011
Kimberly G Lee, MD, MSc, IBCLC, Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatology, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

References

Jone PN, Schowengerdt KO Jr. Prenatal diagnosis of congenital heart disease. Pediatr Clin North Am. 2009 Jun;56(3):709-15

Maeno Y, Hirose A, Kanbe T, Hori D. Fetal arrhythmia: prenatal diagnosis and perinatal management. J Obstet Gynaecol Res. 2009 Aug;35(4):623-9.

Sekar P, Hornberger LK. The role of fetal echocardiography in fetal intervention: a symbiotic relationship. Clin Perinatol. 2009 Jun;36(2):301-27, ix.

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