What Causes A Hole In The Heart?

Brief Answer:
Please get echocardiography done and discuss report with cardiologist

Detailed Answer:
Hi XXXX,
Thanks for writing in to us.

I have read through your query in detail.
Please find my observations below.

1. The heart is a pump and consists of 4 chambers, two upper chambers called atrium and two lower chambers called ventricles. There is a septum which is a wall separating both the upper and lower chambers. Holes in the heart are persistent defects in wall between two chambers of the heart. This way they are called atrial septal defect if present between upper heart chambers and ventricular septal defect if present between lower heart chambers.

2. The whole in your heart might be small if it has not been detected recently and you did not have any problems in childhood. Most large holes in the heart cause symptoms in childhood and are treated early in life.

3. If you never had symptoms in childhood then the hole in your heart might be small.

4. The exact nature of the hole in the heart is known only by doing an echocardiography. This will show any problems like mixing of blood and if any that is causing decreased efficiency in the working of heart.

5. Hole in heart can be closed without doing surgery in most cases. A small device is inserted and the hole is blocked using a closure device in a procedure called catheter angiography which usually takes about an hour and can be done by the cardiologist.

6. Please discuss your echocardiography report with the cardiologist. You might also require medications for proper functioning of your heart.

Hope this answers your question. Please feel free to correct any oversight in my interpretation of your problems and discuss them in detail as per your requirements.

Hope your query is answered.
Do write back if you have any doubts.

Regards,
Dr.Vivek

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