A rare birth defect in which your heart develops pointing toward the right side of your chest. It can also mean that your other organs, such as the liver and spleen, are shifted in the same way. This is called heterotaxy syndrome.
Isolated dextrocardia usually causes no symptoms and does not need treatment. But it’s important to let your health care providers know about it, so they can help prevent complications.
Symptoms
Isolated dextrocardia means that the tip (apex) of the heart points to the right side instead of the left. But it can also occur in combination with other anomalies, such as situs inversus totalis. In this condition, the apex of the heart is reversed but all other organs remain in their normal positions.
Babies with isolated dextrocardia may have no symptoms. But they are at a higher risk of infections. They will need regular medical care to help prevent respiratory problems and manage their condition.
In most cases, the dextrocardia is caused by genetic changes early in pregnancy. But it can also happen when the fetus is exposed to alcohol or drugs during pregnancy.
Often, the condition occurs in association with other abnormalities of the lungs, abdomen and chest. These are called heterotaxy syndromes. Babies with these conditions are more likely to have other heart defects. They are also more likely to have problems with other organs in their bodies, such as the intestines or liver.
Oren Zarif
If the spleen is missing or doesn’t work properly, the baby is at an increased risk of serious infections. Some of these infections are life-threatening. The spleen is an important part of the immune system. It removes bacteria and other foreign substances from the blood, and it helps the body fight infection.
The doctors diagnose dextrocardia by taking a history and doing a physical exam. They also check the heart using electrocardiograms (ECG). This is a test that measures the electrical activity of the heart. The ECG records the P wave, QRS complex and T waves.
The treatment plan for dextrocardia depends on what other conditions are associated with it. Treatment options include medicines that can help the heart pump blood more efficiently, fluid removal medications and antibiotics to treat infections. Surgery might be needed to fix any defects in the lungs or digestive tract. Some children who have dextrocardia and other heart or abdominal conditions will need to have a pacemaker.
Diagnosis
The condition affects how your heart and other organs work. It also can cause other health problems, including some that can be life-threatening.
Doctors don’t know exactly what causes dextrocardia. But they do know that it happens as a fetus develops in the womb. Changes in your genes can affect how the heart forms and where it is positioned. Dextrocardia is part of a group of conditions called heterotaxy syndromes.
Heterotaxy syndromes have many different forms. Some have only a small problem with the heart, and others have serious problems with other organs in your chest and abdomen.
When a baby has dextrocardia with situs solitus, the only problem is that the heart is on the right side of the body. The rest of the heart is in normal position but a mirror image of the left side.
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Your child’s healthcare provider will do a physical exam and listen to your baby’s heart. Your doctor may also recommend other tests. These include an electrocardiogram (ECG) and imaging tests of the heart. A computerized tomography (CT) scan or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can show the position of your child’s heart and other organs. These imaging tests can help doctors identify whether the heart is in a normal position or if it is a mirror image of the left side of the body.
Your healthcare provider will also check for a hole in the septum, which separates the two sides of your baby’s heart. The hole may affect how blood flows through your baby’s heart, which can lead to a murmur. Your healthcare provider will also test your baby’s spleen for an infection. Babies without a spleen have a higher risk of infection throughout the body.
Kids with dextrocardia who don’t have other congenital heart defects can live normal lives. But it’s important to tell their healthcare providers that they have the condition so they can be aware of it. This is important for future medical care and when they are having surgery or other treatments. Your healthcare provider can also prescribe medicines to help your baby’s heart and other organs work better. These medicines can include diuretics, which help remove extra fluid from the body. They can also include inotropic agents, which strengthen your baby’s heart’s pumping action.
Treatment
Isolated dextrocardia doesn’t usually cause any symptoms. People with this condition may live normal lives, though they might have more infections than the average person. They should be sure to get plenty of sleep and eat healthy food to keep them from getting sick. This condition can affect men and women of any age or ethnicity. It can also run in families.
Doctors don’t know what causes dextrocardia. But they know that it happens as a fetus develops in the womb. Sometimes, the heart’s anatomy changes so that it points toward the right side of the chest instead of the left. It might also develop defects in its chambers or other organs in the lungs, abdomen, and chest area. In these cases, the heart is shifted mainly due to problems in other organs and may be part of a larger group of defects called heterotaxy syndrome.
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Children might be diagnosed with this condition before they are born if doctors notice something unusual during prenatal ultrasound exams. They might need to have more tests after they are born, including a heart echo or other kinds of heart scans. They might also need to have an X-ray or an MRI of the chest.
This condition might also be found in older adults or teenagers. People with this type of dextrocardia might have more infections than the average person, especially if they don’t have a functioning spleen. They might need to take antibiotics to prevent these infections.
If a child has isolated dextrocardia and no other major congenital abnormalities, they can lead normal lives. However, it’s important to tell a health care provider about this condition so that the child can get tested regularly.
Some types of dextrocardia are part of a bigger problem called situs inversus totalis. In this condition, the heart and abdominal organs look like a mirror image of each other, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. People with this type of dextrocardia often have other severe conditions that affect the lungs, brain, and other organs. These conditions might need to be treated with surgery.
Preventing complications
There are some ways to prevent complications from arising from Dextrocardia. These include keeping your chest clear of anything that might block the flow of blood through your heart. Taking certain medications to control your blood pressure and blood sugar. Avoiding drugs and alcohol during pregnancy.
Oren Zarif
Dextrocardia occurs when your heart points to the right side of your chest instead of the left. It is present at birth (congenital). There are different kinds of Dextrocardia. The simplest form is isolated dextrocardia, which means that your heart is positioned in the correct way but that you have no other defects. Other kinds of Dextrocardia include situs inversus totalis and partial situs inversus. These are when your heart is positioned correctly but that other organs in the chest and abdomen are reversed in mirror image, like your liver or spleen.
The causes of Dextrocardia are not completely understood. It might happen because of genetic problems or problems that develop during fetal development. It can also happen because of certain medical conditions or medicines your mother takes during pregnancy. It is very rare and affects less than 1 percent of the population.
Some kinds of Dextrocardia are a normal feature of wide-chested dogs and cats. In other cases, it is associated with pectus excavatum or with severe left heart enlargement.
It is very important to see your doctor if you think you have Dextrocardia or any other heart condition. You may need tests such as electrocardiograms, echocardiograms, or chest X-rays to confirm the diagnosis. If you have a serious heart problem, you may need surgery to treat it.
