10 Year Old Has an Atrial Septal Defect

Thank you for writing about this. My son just turned 12 & he has been complaining about sharp chest pains & a pounding heart beat at least twice a month for the last year now. He calls it a 'pulse'. When it happens he pounds his chest & screams because it hurts so bad. I actually thought he was just having bad gas pains & would give him a gas-x, but now I'm going to take him to our family doctor & get real about it. Heart disease runs in both sides of our family. I've been having palpitations since I was 14, & my husband has already had 5 heart attacks & stents put in, starting at age 42, when I was 7 months pregnant. He had what they call a 'Widow Maker'. It was scary. He's extremely healthy, eats healthy, looks great for his age (turns 55 next Friday), so we think the culprit was gum disease & genetics. I have had every heart test in the book, including a heart cath last year. The doctor found two 20% lesions (buildup of cholesterol), but other than that they don't know what's wrong with my heart. I think it's an electrical problem. They have me on a Beta Blocker & Xanax, but I still get these scary palpitations. I thought it might be Long QT Syndrome. They will probably have to put me on a 30 day Holter Monitor for that. The 24 hour monitor never catches the palpitations & beat 'skips'. I will pray for you & your son, & once again thank you for writing this. Now I will take my son's complaints more seriously!

C.

p.s. Magnesium will definitely help too. Look for the powdered Cal/Mag drink at your local vitamin store. Just mix it with water & it tastes great. Also try Co-Q 10 & Omega 3's. I need to get my family back on all that stuff. It really helps.

My daughter was diagnosed with an ASD when she was 12 months old. Our pediatric cardiologist waited until she was three to see if it would close on its own. It did not. When she was 3 we met with the surgeon who would be performing the cath lab procedure. He took another echo and after close examination thought that in one spot there was very little tissue around the rim of the hole to anchor the device that is used to close the hole. We decided to wait 2 years to let her grow a little more so there would be more tissue there to anchor the device. (she was premature and weighed only 20 pounds at 3yrs old)
She turned 5 last summer and we had the cath lab procedure scheduled for August. Looking at the echo now, they realized the hole had gotten bigger: the right side of her heart had become so much more enlarged that it was stretching the hole larger. The surgeon gave us an 80% chance of being able to successfully close it with the device. We decided to go ahead and try it. After being in the cath lab for 2 hours, they stopped - the hole was just too big to use a device. Through the catheter they insert a balloon into the hole to accurately measure it. It was 36mm.
She was able to go home after a few hours. The procedure was on a Thursday and she was back at school on Monday and in gymnastics class Monday evening. The recovery is so minimal with this procedure and the risks of infection are so low. It's really a very simple procedure - of "heart procedures" this is really the most simple and routine. I know that doesn't do much to alleviate the stress and anxiety of a mother. Do some research on who will be performing the procedure and the hospital. Meet with surgeon - make sure you are completely confident with him/her.
It's definitely something that has to be repaired - if left open he could have serious problems in his twenties or if he's athletic.
My daughter then had open heart surgery in September and they stitched a piece of gore-tex over the hole to patch it. She was out of school for 2 wks and no PE or sports for 4 weeks after that. At her one month check up there was already a noticable decrease in the size of the right side of her heart. Her 6 month check up is next week and her heart should be back to normal size. She is doing very well.
I pray everything goes well for your son and your whole family. Be strong and courageous for your son - it will help lessen any anxiety he has. Make sure he can express any concerns and/or fears he may have before the procedure so that he can be strong and courageous too.

My daughter was born with a heart defect: Transposition of the Great Arteries. The two main arteries of her heart grew switched, and the oxygenated blood only went from her heart to her lungs, and she started turning blue after we cut the cord. She had to have a heart-cath at a few hours old to create an ASD so her blood would mix properly. She did just fine with that surgery. She was flown to Boston at 2 days old and had open heart surgery at 5 days old to do the Arterial Switch and repair the "man-made" ASD that was created to save her life. We went through a lot, but I'm sure your son will be fine. At least he has a heart bigger than a walnut for the doctor to work on :)

My 10yo only has a normal heart murmur that comes and goes on its own. Your son and your family will be in my thoughts and prayers.

I don't know about heart caths, but look up online: magnesium and it's affects on the heart.