How congenital heart diseases develop?
In most cases we do not know what causes congenital heart disease to develop. The parent’s should not feel that it is their fault for having a child with this problem. Rarely, a viral infection in the mother during the first few months of pregnancy may produce a serious heart problem (for example if the mothers gets German Measles during the first three months of pregnancy, the child’s heart may not develop normally) Heredity sometimes plays a role. More than one child in a family may have a congenital heart defect, but this is rare. Certain conditions that affect multiple organs, such as Down’s syndrome (Mongolism), can also affect the heart. Some drugs can also affect heart development if consumed during early pregnancy. Alcohol consumption can also affect heart development.
