Max's Heart...

With Max we know we are dealing with a congenital heart defect. The word congenital means inborn or existing at birth. In the previous post I explained how a normal heart functions- I would suggest reading that first if the heart is not something you are very familiar with (like me). Max's heart is functioning very differently then a normal heart.
The basic "problem" with Max's heart is that he is operating with only 3 working chambers. His right ventricle is completely non-functioning. Or as the cardiologist put it, "his right ventricle is like a shoulder pad- it takes up some space and it is moving with the left ventricle but it is not performing any function." A single ventricle heart is a defect that is quite complicated because simply his left ventricle is doing double the work. That single ventricle not only needs to pump blood to the lungs, it also need to pump blood to the body. And the main problem with a single ventricle heart is the mixing of "blue" and "red" blood within the ventricle. For a more medical description of single ventricle heart conditions you can click here.
Another defect of Max's heart is called Atrial Septal Defect (ASD). This means there is a hole between the right and left atrium causing the red and blood blood to mix in the atrium. In Max's situation the cardiologist said this is actually a good thing. Since the red and blue blood will be mixing in the atrium it will decrease the amount of work the left ventricle will have to do. I do not understand exactly how that works but if the doctor says it is a good thing then I will trust him. Here is a picture of a heart with ASD (click on picture to enlarge):Max also has a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD). It is very similar to ASD except that the hole is between the right and left ventricle. Since Max's right ventricle is considerd non-funtioning the VSD is not an issue that is a big concern to the doctors at this point. There may be some blood flow back and forth between the right and left ventricle but at this point it does not seem to increase or decrease the amount of work that his left ventricle is having to do. Here is a picture of a heart with VSD (click on picture to enlarge):Dextrocardia is another thing that makes Max's heart unique. Dextrocardia literally means "heart on the right" so Max's heart is actually a mirrored image of what a normal heart looks like. This isn't considered a defect, just a way to describe what his heart looks like. And the fact that his heart is flipped the wrong way is not effecting the funtionality of his heart. For more information you can click here.
And the last thing the cardiologist diognosed Max's heart with is Transposition of the Great Arteries. Looking at Max's heart both the pulmonary artery and the aorta are attached to his left ventricle. In a normal heart this would cause a lot of problems but since Max is only operating with his left ventricle this is actually helping him. His left side is the side that is working so it makes sense that both main arteries are connected to the left side. Of all things we discussed with the doctor this was the most confusing to me but I am sure as I learn more I will understand how the transposition will work with Max's heart.
Okay... that is everything we discussed with the cardiologist. I am sure there will be a lot more details as we continue to meet with doctors. It really sounds like an overwhelming amount of problems but it is amazing how some problems are actually helping ease the stress of a different problem. The body is amazing. And it is amazing that doctors were able to detect these problems and have the knowledge and experience to be able to fix Max's heart. We know that additional issues might arise as he continues to grow but the best thing we can hope for is that his heart will continue to develop at the same rate.