Can transposition of the great arteries be diagnosis in utero?
Simple transposition of the great arteries (TGA) is a cyanotic heart disease that accounts for 5% to 7% of all congenital heart diseases. It is commonly underdiagnosed in utero, with prenatal detection rates of less than 50%.
How long can you live with transposition of the great vessels?
The simple transposition of the great arteries is a lethal congenital heart disease. The life expectancy of unoperated patients is about 9 months.
What is the recommended treatment for transposition of the great vessels?
All children with transposition of the great arteries will require open heart surgery to treat the defect. Without surgical repair, the overwhelming majority of patients with TGA will not survive their first year. The surgery, known as the arterial switch operation, is typically performed within a few days of birth.
Can TGA be detected before birth?
TGA is sometimes diagnosed by fetal ultrasound before the baby is born. First trimester screening for chromosomal abnormalities is a good screening tool to identify patients who might be at an increased risk for cardiac defects.
How do you diagnose transposition of the great vessels?
Transposition of the great arteries can be diagnosed by a fetal ultrasound. But this requires special diligence and therefore, at times, can be missed on a routine fetal ultrasound. Sometimes, a fetal echocardiogram performed by specialists is required to make a diagnosis of transposition in a fetus.
What causes transposition of the great vessels?
Transposition of the great arteries occurs during pregnancy when the baby’s heart is developing. The cause is most often unknown. To understand transposition of the great arteries, it may be helpful to know how the heart typically pumps blood.
How many babies are born with transposition of the great arteries?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that about 1,153 babies are born with TGA each year in the United States. This means that every 1 in 3,413 babies born in the US is affected by this defect.
Can transposition of the great arteries cause brain damage?
Brain injury, impaired brain growth, and long-term neurodevelopmental problems are common in children with transposition of the great arteries.
How serious is transposition of the great arteries?
In transposition of the great arteries, the main arteries leading away from the heart — the aorta and the pulmonary artery — are switched (transposed). Transposition of the great arteries (TGA) is a serious, rare heart problem in which the two main arteries leaving the heart are reversed (transposed).
How common is TGA in newborns?
Occurrence. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that about 1,153 babies are born with TGA each year in the United States. This means that every 1 in 3,413 babies born in the US is affected by this defect.
Is transposition of the great vessels hereditary?
Background Transposition of the great arteries (TGA) is considered to be associated only rarely with genetic syndromes and to have a low risk of precurrence among relatives of affected patients.
Is transposition of the great vessels fatal?
Transposition of the great arteries or TGA is a potentially fatal congenital heart malformation where the pulmonary artery and the aorta are switched. The switch means that the aorta, which normally carries oxygenated blood, carries deoxygenated blood.