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Echocardiogram to gauge the direction and speed of blood flow within and around the heart, to detect disease or build-up of fluid, or to check the performance of the heart valves. There are both fetal and infant echocardiograms available.

Cardiac catheterization to determine if valve damage or abnormalities are present. During the cardiac catheterization, a coronary angiogram may be done, in which a special dye (contrast medium) is injected into the blood vessels to view the activity of vessel walls, valves and the heart muscle.

Blood tests to assess for oxygen levels and other indicators of illness that may be present in the blood.

Treatment methods for blue baby

Inotropic medications such as digoxin may ease the symptoms of some congenital heart diseases by reducing the workload of the muscles, vessels or chambers of the heart.

If medication is not helpful, then a more invasive treatment option may be advised, such as cardiac catheterization. During this procedure, there are various strategies through which the physician can correct valve, vessel and chamber problems. Working through a thin tube (catheter) that has been inserted through a large blood vessel (e.g., in the upper thigh) and guided to the heart, physicians can open vessels and valves that have narrowed (stenosis), close defects in the wall (septum) between the heart�s chambers and repair malformed vessels. Catheter-based techniques are taking the place of open-heart surgery for repair of many heart defects and offer a less invasive treatment option for many children.

Although an approved in-utero surgery is not yet available, there are surgeries that can treat many heart defects soon after birth. These surgeries include the following:

Arterial switch operation. A procedure in which the two reversed major arteries (the pulmonary artery and aorta) are switched to their normal positions.

Shunting procedure. A passage is formed to channel blood to the proper paths and to correct abnormal direction of blood flow. This is usually a temporary way to relieve the symptoms of a defect, and the defect may be fully repaired after the patient has had some time to grow. In one such procedure, a Blalock-Taussig shunt is used to form a new passageway between the aorta and the pulmonary artery. Thus, additional blood can travel from the aorta to the lungs through the pulmonary artery, increasing the flow and quality of blood flow to the lungs and restoring the patient's natural pinkish color.

Damus-Kaye-Stansel procedure. A surgery performed to repair transposition of the great arteries, in which the pulmonary artery is cut into two segments. The first segment is already connected to the lungs at one end, and the surgeon connects the other end to the right ventricle. Thus, oxygen-poor blood can travel from the right ventricle through the first segment of the pulmonary artery and to the lungs. The second segment is already connected to the left ventricle at one end, and the surgeon connects the other end to the aorta. Thus, oxygen-rich blood can travel from the left ventricle through the second segment of the pulmonary artery and out the aorta, to the rest of the body.

Fontan procedure. This procedure corrects such cyanotic conditions as pulmonary atresia or tricuspid atresia by connecting the right atrium to the pulmonary artery, thus allowing blood to travel directly from the right atrium to the lungs, via the pulmonary artery, bypassing the right ventricle.

Ross procedure. The pulmonary valve is used to replace the malformed or abnormal aortic valve. A donor valve is then used to replace the pulmonary valve.

Many of these patients, both before and after surgery, are at risk of developing endocarditis, an inflammation or infection of the lining of the heart. To prevent this, they will need to take antibiotics before any minimally invasive or invasive procedures (e.g., dental surgery) for life.

While the long-term prognosis depends on the nature and severity of the specific condition(s) and on the appropriate treatment options, chances are better than ever before that properly treated blue babies will grow up to live normal, healthy lives.