If your doctor finds something that looks unusual in your unborn baby’s heart, he may refer you for a more thorough examination known as a fetal echocardiogram.
Not too long ago the vast majority of babies with congenital heart disease were not diagnosed until after birth, often after becoming ill, making it more difficult to help care for them. Nowadays, thanks to great advances in prenatal care and technology we are able to diagnose more of these children before they are born which enables us to ensure that they receive the care they need as soon as they arrive.
Thankfully, not all cases referred for a fetal echocardiogram are found to have significant congenital heart disease. In fact, most fetal echocardiograms end up demonstrating that the baby’s heart is normal.
A suspected abnormality is not the only reason your doctor may refer you for a fetal echocardiogram, some other reasons include:
-A family history of congenital heart disease
-Prenatal use of specific medication or assistive reproductive technology
-You may have certain health conditions, such as diabetes or lupus
We understand that being told your unborn child needs to see a cardiologist can be very stressful. At Pediatric Cardiology of Long Island we will do our best to help get you in as soon as possible to help alleviate the tension and provide you with more definitive answers.