Ultrasound of the heart for a child

The health of a child's heart is important for a fulfilling life and the normal development of every baby. That is why, in case of any suspicion of problems with the heart muscle or blood flow in this organ, it is important to examine the child on time and begin treatment. To quickly and accurately identify pathologies of the cardiovascular system, many research methods have been developed. One of the most commonly used in children is cardiac ultrasound.

What is it?

This is the name of a diagnostic procedure in which ultrasonic waves are applied to the area under study (in this case, the heart). These waves are generated by the device's sensor and directed to the heart, as well as to nearby large vessels. Due to the fact that different tissues reflect or absorb ultrasound in different ways, it is possible to assess their condition.

The waves, which are reflected from the examined organ, fall on the same sensor, and then are analyzed in the computer of the apparatus. Everything happens in real time, so the doctor immediately sees the data on the device monitor. Since the main principle of ultrasound is the reflection of waves, such a study is also called echocardiography (abbreviated as echoCG) or echocardioscopy.

You can learn more about the procedure by watching the following video.

Thanks to this research, the doctor can conduct:

Assessment of the work of the child's heart.
Measuring the size of the heart.
Determination of the thickness of its walls.
Monitoring the condition and operation of the valves.
Assessment of blood flow inside the heart.
Visualization of large vessels that leave the heart and bring blood to it.
Measurement of pressure inside the heart.

Indications

Ultrasound of the heart is prescribed for children with suspected congenital cardiac pathologies and heart disease. The reason for doing the research may be:

Refusal of a newborn or baby from a breast, if there are no acute diseases.
Heart murmur heard by the pediatrician.
Alarming changes in the child's electrocardiogram.
Increased baby fatigue.
Recurrent (when sucking in infants or during exercise in older children) or persistent bluing of the child's lips or the area of skin above the upper lip, called the nasolabial triangle.
Episodes of loss of consciousness in a child.
Revealing of chest tremor by parents, if you put your fingers to its lower half on the left or under the sternum.
Increased body temperature without signs of acute viral infections and complaints from the child.
Excessive sweating for no reason.
Shortness of breath at normal body temperature.
Periodic cold snap of the extremities.
Child complaints about chest pains.
Periodic or constant pulsation of the child's cervical veins.
Frequent pneumonia.
Child's lag in physical development and insufficient weight gain.
The appearance of a dry cough with a normal throat and normal body temperature.
Heart disease in relatives.

In addition, ultrasound is prescribed for children with a preventive purpose at 1 month, especially if there are congenital heart defects in the family or the expectant mother had acute infections during the gestation period. Additionally, this procedure is prescribed routinely for children at the age of 12 months, as well as in the adolescent period (at 14 years old).

You will learn more about the noise in the heart of a child by watching the following video.

Contraindications

The procedure is generally not contraindicated for children of any age, but in some cases it is not performed if the child is extremely negative against it or behaves too restlessly.

Kinds

In addition to the traditional ultrasound, when a child is checked the heart by applying the sensor to the chest in a calm state, there are also such types of ultrasound examination of this organ:

Transoesophageal echocardiography. With this version of the study of the heart using ultrasound, a special sensor is inserted into the child's esophagus in order to be able to see the parts that are poorly visualized with conventional ultrasound. Manipulation is quite unpleasant for a child and requires special preparation, therefore it is used extremely rarely in children. It is prescribed for severe heart disease or, in some cases, after operations on this organ.
Stress test. For such a study, first physical activity or the administration of a drug is required, after which ultrasound is used to check how the heart is coping with its work in the changed conditions. The procedure is performed under the supervision of several specialists, and resuscitation equipment is always at the ready. In addition, this method has its own indications and quite a lot of contraindications, therefore, its use is limited in childhood.

Is the procedure harmful?

Ultrasound examination of a child's heart is a completely safe procedure. Its implementation does not impair the work of the heart and does not adversely affect the health of babies. This allows ultrasound to be performed multiple times, even in one day. In addition, the manipulation is completely painless and is tolerated by most children without any particular difficulties.

What diseases does it diagnose?

Echocardioscopy in childhood can reveal:

Congenital malformations of the heart, in particular, its septa and valves.
Blood clots in the heart cavity or on its walls.
Reduction in the volume of the chambers of the heart or their expansion.
Increased volume of the heart muscle or its decrease.
The presence of fluid in the heart bag (called the pericardium).
Narrowing of the coronary vessels.
Thickening of the heart valves.
Inflammation of the inner lining of the heart called the endocardium.
Dying off of a portion of the heart muscle (heart attack).

At what age can ultrasound of the heart be done?

The procedure can be carried out from the first day of life, if there are indications for it. For its implementation at a very early age, the ultrasound machine is equipped with a small sensor. It is also important that the examination of newborns is performed by a specialist who has experience in examining such small patients.

Where can you get an ultrasound scan?

Nowadays, such a procedure is carried out in almost all medical institutions - both in district polyclinics, and in private medical centers, and in hospitals. The option of carrying out manipulations at home is also available, which is used in the serious condition of the child.

How much does the procedure cost?

The cost of ultrasound examination of the heart is influenced by several factors, among which the qualifications of the doctor, the authority of the medical institution and the accuracy of the equipment are especially significant. In a regular clinic, the manipulation can be carried out for free, but you need to sign up for a queue, which is not suitable in case of an urgent need to diagnose the heart. In private clinics, prices for the procedure vary from 600 rubles to 5 thousand rubles.

Preparing for diagnosis

No special preparation is required for echocardioscopy and there is no special diet before cardiac ultrasound. If the baby is a baby, you can feed him immediately before the procedure so that the baby falls asleep and calmly endures the manipulation.

If the child is older than infancy, it is important to pay attention to the psychological preparation of the child:

Tell your baby why and how exactly the manipulation will be performed.
Set the child in a positive mood and emphasize that the research will not hurt.
Ask your child to listen to the doctor's instructions and be calm.
Do not discuss the symptoms of the disease and the possible risks in the presence of your baby.

Mom should not forget to take a referral, a diaper, a bottle of water, napkins and the baby's favorite toy for examination.

How is the procedure going?

The child is not injected into anesthesia, but for an ultrasound it is important that the baby lies quietly for about 15 minutes. To do this, parents are present in the office, trying to distract and calm the little one, for example, with the help of toys. The process of echocardioscopy itself looks like this:

The child is stripped to the waist and laid on a couch.
A small amount of gel is applied to the baby's breast skin, which is water-soluble and hypoallergenic.
The probe of the device is applied to the gel and moves along the child's chest during the examination.
Older children may be asked to hold their breath several times during the procedure.

Decoding the results

The analysis of the data obtained by ultrasound of the heart is carried out by the doctor of ultrasound diagnostics, referring to the standard indicators characteristic of children of a certain age. Noticing deviations, he describes them in conclusion, for example, that the wall of the ventricle is thickened.

At the same time, the condition of the valves is assessed, in which the specialist detects whether a sufficient amount of blood leaves the heart when it contracts into the vessels (this parameter is called ejection fraction), and also whether part of the blood returns to the heart (this phenomenon is called regurgitation).

With the results of the ultrasound, parents should go to a pediatric cardiologist or their local pediatrician. The doctor evaluates the data taking into account the clinical picture and determines the tactics for treatment if any problems are identified.

Here are some average heart ultrasound results in millimeters:

Possible pathologies

During ultrasound of the heart, you can diagnose:

Open oval window. It is detected normally in children of the first year of life in the septum between the atria. In some children, its overgrowth occurs by 5 years of age. In older children, the presence of an oval window is a pathology.
Mitral stenosis... The problem is manifested by the reduced size of the chambers in the right ventricle and left atrium, as well as thickened walls of these parts of the heart. In addition, with stenosis, thickened mitral valves and a reduced opening separating the left heart are revealed.
Insufficiency of the mitral valve... Its presence is judged by the non-closure of the valve leaflets during the contraction of the heart and the return of part of the blood to the left atrium from the ventricle.
Aortic stenosis. This pathology is diagnosed on the basis of the thickened walls of the right atrium, as well as the left ventricle. In addition, the ultrasound reveals a narrowing in the aorta.
Insufficiency of the aortic valve. Its presence is detected in the absence of closure of the cusps of this valve.
Endocarditis. With such a disease, growths will be detected on the valves.
Myocardial infarction. On ultrasound, it will look like a part of the heart muscle that is not functioning.
Myocarditis. This pathology is manifested by the expansion of the cavities of the heart and a decrease in the ejection fraction.