What is a congenital heart defect and what causes it?
The heart has four chambers with four valves. And there are walls separating the chambers. Most heart defects affect the walls between the chambers, or the heart valves. Only about 25 percent will cause symptoms and need treatment. We don’t really know the cause of congenital heart defects. We do believe that there are both genetic factors, and that means a defect in a gene or a part of a gene that leads to development of the heart defect, and also environmental factors — exposure to infectious agents or exposure to certain toxic agents, or even not receiving pre-natal vitamins. If someone wants to prevent a heart defect, all they can do is make sure they receive pre-natal vitamins, they don’t smoke, and they try to lead a healthy lifestyle during pregnancy. Beyond that, there’s not really much a parent can do to prevent a heart defect in their child.
