Children can also have heart disease. This condition is what they call congenital heart disease. What are the common signs of heart problems in children? As we go along in this article, we will provide you with details about these symptoms. Meanwhile, could there be possibilities that eye issues can relate to heart problems? Mornington Eye’s specialists in Melbourne can help you check your eye condition.

What is congenital heart disease?

Congenital heart disease is a condition wherein a child is born with. Furthermore, this condition can affect the structure of the heart. A disorder can affect several parts of the heart. It can affect the heart’s walls, valves, arteries, and veins as well.

As a result, the blood’s flow can be in an abnormal state. The blood flow can either slow down, go the wrong direction or place, or be blocked completely. Congenital heart disease can have long-term effects on a child’s health.

For this reason, children might need to undergo surgery, catheter procedures, or medications. However, for severe cases, a heart transplant is the best option. To tell you more about heart disease in children, you can watch the video following this paragraph. This video will help you understand congenital heart disease more.

Common signs of heart disease in children

1. Blue color around the lips and blue skin signifies heart disease. The medical term for this is cyanosis.
2. With heart disease, it will be challenging to feed them. Children can become sweaty during this activity.
3. Your child may experience shortness of breath.
4. You will notice your child shows poor growth.
5. Additionally, one of the noticeable symptoms is pale skin.
6. Moreover, your children are prone to fatigue, even with the simple movements they make.

These symptoms occur due to decreased oxygen supply to the body. As we all know, the blood carries oxygen to various parts of the body. However, if the heart is not functioning well, it cannot sustain the blood supply while affecting oxygen supply.

Other possible symptoms of heart disease

Aside from what we have mentioned above, other potential symptoms signify heart disease. A person with heart disease can also encounter chest pain, chest tightness, chest pressure, and chest discomfort.

Chest pain can cause several sensations to the person experiencing it. The cause of chest pain varies, which can also signify a heart attack. In general, you can tell that your pain or discomfort is heart-related with either of the following conditions:

1. Chest tightness or a feeling of fullness.
2. Pain that can even radiate to your upper parts of the body.
3. The pain associated with a heart attack can last longer and varies in intensity.
4. The patient might experience cold sweats as well.
5. Dizziness or weakness is also relative to a heart problem.
6. Additionally, nausea or vomiting is also possible.

Generally speaking, it would be difficult to identify the cause of chest pain on your own. It can be a heart attack or otherwise associated with another health condition. For this reason, it would be best to get the opinion of a medical professional.

Additionally, the eyes can also show symptoms of a potential heart condition. Generally speaking, the eyes are one of the organs that require oxygen supply. In this case, the eyes can be the window to identifying a heart defect, such as the following:

1. There are noticeable changes in blood vessels in the eyes.
2. Your eyes contain cholesterol deposits, either inside or around them. As a result, it will increase the risk of a stroke and heart attack.
3. A patient may encounter a temporary vision loss.

As has been noted, heart failure can show several symptoms, such as chest pain or eye disorders.

Tests to confirm heart and blood vessels’ condition

Visiting a medical professional is the best option parents can do to confirm the condition of their child. They will perform several tests to see if your child has a heart problem.

1. Fetal echocardiogram: This test applies before a child is born. Through this test, it will allow the doctors to prepare treatment plans for the baby’s condition.
2. Echocardiogram: This noninvasive test applies after your child was born. This procedure produces images of your child’s heart. Furthermore, it shows the heart’s motion. So, it would be possible to identify abnormalities.
3. Electrocardiogram: Using this test, the doctor will refer to the heart’s recorded electrical activity. In effect, they can see if there are heart defects or rhythm problems.
4. Chest x-ray: An x-ray allows the doctor to see if your child’s heart has enlargement or fluid and extra blood in the lungs is present. These conditions signify heart failure.
5. Pulse oximetry: It includes the measurement of oxygen in the child’s blood. A small amount of oxygen in the blood can mean there is an issue with the heart.
6. Cardiac catheterization: If the doctor wants to see a more detailed view of the child’s heart, they will prefer doing this procedure. In this case, they will insert a flexible tube into the groin’s blood vessel until it reaches the heart.
7. Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (MRI): Nowadays, this test is famous for diagnosing and evaluating heart defects. Modern MRI technology provides faster imaging and higher resolutions.

Undergoing these tests is necessary to confirm the exact heart condition.

Preventing heart disease

It is not only the adults who have to stay fit and healthy. Even the children need to be healthy as young as they are. There is no exact cause and prevention of congenital heart disease. However, we can do some ways to reduce its progression.

It would be best to follow a healthy diet, as early as possible, to lower the risk of heart diseases. As people age, developing chronic diseases is highly probable if health is not well-taken care of. For this reason, start living a healthy lifestyle before it’s too late.