Possible vsd/asd found in 20 week ultrasound

[Karik95]

Ok so a couple of days I had my 20 week ultrasound so see my baby, hopes and confidence were super high as we have had a child before which was low risk pregnancy. The baby itself ticks the boxes for being healthy, organs and limbs etc but they are struggling with the heart. They are unsure whether it is a VSD or an ASD (a hole in the heart) We have had another scan a couple of days later with a different sonographer and she couldn't see either. The baby was in a difficult position both times, we were unable to get a good picture of it.

I am obviously pretty upset and confused on how to feel and what to expect even though they've loaded me with information, it just doesn't seem to sink in what's happening.

Has anyone else experienced this and had their baby? What happened, was everything ok ? Did the hole close naturally? Will my baby be able to live a normal active life?

Tia, a stressed out mum xxx

I’m sorry you’re going through this. It’s so stressful.

I had similar news at my baby’s 20 week scan (although not the same potential conditions). The sonographer suspected coarctation of the aeorta, and we were referred for specialist scans which confirmed it. We went for scans every few weeks throughout the pregnancy, and when my baby was born he was taken to the NICU, and subsequently transferred to GOSH where corrective surgery would take place.

Almost as soon as he arrived, further testing confirmed that he did not have the suspected condition. It was a misdiagnosis. We were discharged and went home.

It was deeply stressful but with a wonderful outcome.

Ours had it still at birth, they rescanned her at 12 months to see if it needed operating on and it had almost completely closed (asd) so didn't need anything doing or any further monitoring
I can't remember the exact figures but there was a high percentage who have it and it generally does resolve itself. You may find its gone by birth even.

My daughter was born with a VSD.
Unfortunately this was not picked up on any scans nor was the stonking heart murmur heard by any healthcare professional until she was 12 weeks old.
We had a paeds referral for something else and at this point the consultant heard the murmur and sent us to cardiology.
Thats where the VSD was first picked up.
We had consultant cardiology referrals for monitoring for 2 years and the hole closed by itself when she was just over 2 years old.
It didnt impact her at all. You wouldnt have known there was an issue.
We had to be more careful with infections and request antibiotics early on to minimise the risk of endocarditis. We were also advised that piercings are not recommended (neither are tattoos), which we wouldnt have ever considered anyway.
Shes never had any lasting effects of it and is a crazy three year old.
Its a super worrying time but the cardiac teams were brilliant.

Just to explain that sometimes there is no murmur present with VSD, regardless of the size of defect, for up to several weeks in newborn babies. It is not necessarily the case that anyone failed to hear a murmur. This is because newborn babies (as part of their normal physiology) have higher pressures in the right side of their heart which gradually reduce. So they start off with similar pressures on L and R, resulting in low flow and no murmur. Then as the pressure on the right side reduces, the pressure difference from L > R increases, and flow/turbulence across the defect increases, producing the audible murmur.

As to the OP's question, there is a large variation of severity/effects of ASD/VSD with this being a relatively common defect and many babies do not require any treatment at all. Some babies will require medication and/or when they are a good size might have a non-surgical treatment like a percutaneous closure. Rarely is there a need for surgery and rarer still would that be right after being born - there would usually be a period of weeks-months of management with medication until baby was well grown, even in quite severe cases. For the reason I outline above, it's unusual for these to cause immediate difficulties following birth. It's not at all uncommon for ASD/VSD to be diagnosed incidentally (that means, when they are being seen for a completely separate problem) in adults who have been entirely asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic their whole lives.

It sounds like there is also a reasonable change your baby doesn't have a VSD or ASD. I would guess that your baby is going to have a further fetal echocardiogram and you will have the chance to further discuss this with a consultant obstetrician? I know this advice is very difficult but I would try to wait until you really know what is happening in the baby's heart before speculating too much. Best of luck xxx

Same outcome mine is now 12

Since this scan I have had 2 more, the last one today. They believe that is is a possible AVSD with the hole locating just above the centre of the heart. It is only small but it is definitely there. We are being referred to a different hospital where they have specialists in this kind of thing. They keep offering me extra tests to check for down syndrome etc. I don't agree with the invasiveness of this so I have refused as there is a high chance we could lose our baby. Now it is a bit more certain what it is, has anyone experienced an AVSD at all and it's outcomes? We are happy no matter the baby but it does come with its worries. Just need a piece of mind and to hear what real people have experienced.

Sorry for the original post, I wrote it in a crazy rush and now reading it back it seems a bit jumbled! Thank you for everyone that has replied. 💕🌈🌼