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What Are Holes in the Heart?

Defects of the secundum type of atrial septal defect usually go undetected in the first year or two of life because of the lack of symptoms and unimpressive auscultatory findings. A soft systolic murmur is the usual reason for referral. Symptoms become more common in persons in their late teens and twenties, and by age 40 the majority of these individuals are symptomatic, some severely so.

Spontaneous closure of these defects is rare beyond the first two years of life. Transcatheter closure of centrally located secundum in selected older infants, children and adults using a double umbrella or a buttoned device appears to be an acceptable alternative to surgical closure. A hole in the heart, also called an atrial septal defect or ventricular septal defect is a type of simple congenital heart defect. This is a problem with the heart's structure that's present at birth. Congenital heart defects change the normal flow of blood through the heart.

Your heart has two sides, separated by an inner wall called the septum. With each heartbeat, the right side of the heart receives oxygen-poor blood from the body and pumps it to the lungs.

The left side of the heart receives oxygen-rich blood from the lungs and pumps it to the body. The septum prevents mixing of blood between the two sides of the heart.

Some babies are born with a hole in the upper or lower septum. A hole in the septum between the heart's upper two chambers is an ASD.

A hole in the septum between the heart's lower two chambers (the ventricles, pronounced VEN-trih-kuls) is a VSD.

A hole in the septum can allow blood to pass from the left side of the heart to the right side. This means that oxygen-rich blood can mix with oxygen-poor blood, causing the oxygen-rich blood to be pumped to the lungs a second time.

Over the past few decades, the diagnosis and treatment of ASDs and VSDs have greatly improved. As a result, a child with a simple heart defect can grow to adulthood and live a normal, active, and productive life because his or her heart defect closes on its own or has been repaired.