Etopic heartbeat at 32weeks. Made to deliver early?

[Alm2018]

Hi I was looking to see if anyone has been through anything similar. I have been googling the past few days and struggling to find much on the subject or even stories of people going through it.

2 days ago I was admitted to hospital to monitor baby's heart. From this they picked up that the baby has an etopic heart beat and is also skipping heartbeats. We went for a scan and this confirmed it.

The doctor spoke with us and has decided the rest of our pregnancy will be consultation lead and there is a possibility that the baby might be delivered early.

They told us structurally the baby's heart looks good but this is a mechanical issue. When the baby is born it could sort it's self out but also there is a possibility it might not but specialist will be at the birth and will take over when the baby is here.

We didn't know in till this that my partners granny had congenital heart disease and it's hereditary so worried now our baby might have this.

Has anyone been through something similar? Or has anyone been made to deliver early because of a heart problem? I have so many questions and can't make sense of anything in my head.

This is a really specialised area, so it's unlikely you'll get a definitive answer on here. However, in very very general terms, babies with heart issues are usually better off inside Mum for as long as possible, to allow them to grow as much as they can. If (and it's a big IF, your baby won't necessarily need anything done at all) they need surgery, it's generally easier the bigger they are.

I think you will probably be monitored fairly closely for the rest of the pregnancy, and the situation may become clearer as you go along. Write down your questions as they occur to you and take the list to your next appointment. It's really hard to remember what you wanted to ask when you are sitting there!

Partner's granny's problem can't have been so bad that she wasn't able to have a baby (that's about the most stressful thing you can do to your heart), so probably not all that bad? Lots of heart problems just happen spontaneously and aren't always inherited so it could be unrelated.

Baby centre has a heart baby and children board where you might find a poster with experience. My dd had a different chd(s) which were structural so no experience with this issue but she was delivered by planned section at 39 weeks so not early. Have you had a referral to a fetal cardiology unit?

Thank you for both of your replies! It helps ease your mind just speaking with someone. I have to go see a consultant tomorrow to decide on the next steps so think I will write all my questions down tonight so I get some more answers. I will also go look on the other boards too x

Ok I literally just registered to answer you :) but couldn't just read and not reply since I went through the same thing not so far ago and remember how worried and desperate for information and other people experience I was.

Anyways to begin with important stuff - my son is now 7 months and absolutely fine :) Ectopic beats/skipped beats were also discovered during routine 32 weeks check-up. I was reffered to a fetal cardiologist, who performed specialised US which also showed no structural problems, just atrial extrasistoly/premature atrial complexes. It was explained to me, that this is still normal heart rhyhm, the only problem is, that approximately 1 in 200 babies with this pattern go on to develop tachycardia, which can cause problems. Otherwise PACs usually go away soon after or even before birth.

Because of everything said I had growth scans every other week (growth problems would indicate that something is not right, since tachycardia might not be evident at the time of check-up). I think at 35 or 36 weeks babies heartbeat normalised, but on the next one extrasystoles were there again.. he had them all the way through the labour aswell (ctg is rutinely done during labour where I'm from), but after delivery his heart rhythm completely normalised and was fine since :)

I did not need to be induced or anything, labour started spontaneously 3 days after due date.

Wishing you all the best, try to not worry too much. From everything I read and researched, complications in this cases are very very rare and even if tachycardia develops, it is very treatable.