Question For Sqad !

[mikey4444]

Some good friends of mine in America have just had a new grandson, with
"transposition of the great vessels" Cardiac surgery on the little chap is scheduled for next week and he is stable at present. My friends are terribly worried, as they are 1000 miles away from their daughter and son in law.

I have googled this but I still don't understand much. Could I impose on your medical knowledge today please ?

[stuey]

Just a quick guess before Sqad arrives: something to do with the aorta and the Venae cavae.

[Sqad]

Certainly........without getting too technical.....all the blood from the heart and lungs is going in the wrong vessels and direction.

This is a big deal, but well recognised condition.

You will hate me for saying this......but being in the USA he is in the right place for cardiac corrective surgery.

If you need details of the operation....then let me know.

[mikey4444]

Thanks for coming back so soon Sqad ! According the brief email that I have just had, and I quote ::

"He was fairly quickly diagnosed with a cardiac defect called transposition of the great vessels. It is a major defect and also has 2 big holes in his heart. It is correctable with surgery which we are waiting to have scheduled. Long term health is expected to be normal. His is not a typical transposition so the surgery will be more complex than originally expected "

So I would guess that as Stuey says ( thanks Stuey) The other grandparents are quite wealthy, so I can guess that he will get the best medical care that money can provide. But presume that I am right in guessing that this is major surgery on a baby not yet a week old. Would this have been noticed before he was born ?

I will let you know how all this pans out when he has had his Op, and once again, thanks so much.

[Sqad]

No it would be very unlikely to be diagnosed before birth.

On delivery.........it would be a "blue baby" (cyanosed)

There are many types and degrees of vessel abnormalities, but these will be worked out by the cardiac unit.

Prognosis is good.

[mikey4444]

Once again, thanks !

I do wonder about those scan photos though. Everybody says that because they can see a winky-woo, its going to be a boy. But to my untrained eyes, these scans just look like a depression off the coast of Iceland !