Foetal echocardiography is a specialist examination which requires extended knowledge and appropriate equipment, with prenatal and cardiologic examination software.
Foetal echo allows acquiring complete information about foetal wellbeing and anatomy, which can be given to the expectant mother and her obstetrician. In case of any abnormalities, the result of foetal echo allows taking appropriate decisions regarding e.g. intrauterine foetal therapy or planning of optimal way, time and place of delivery.
The modern VOLUSON EXPERT ultrasound scanner, which is at our disposal, allows us to carry out gynaecological and foetal ultrasound, and also highly specialist ultrasound examinations (such as foetal echocardiography). This scanner allows both for qualitative (anatomical) and also quantitative (Doppler blood flow measurement) assessment in gynaecology and obstetrics, which means also foetal echocardiography.
An examination is performed by Doctor Aneta Krasoń who was awarded the Echocardiography and Prenatal Cardiology Skill Certificate of Polish Ultrasound Society no. 8/2000.
The foetal echocardiography helps to detect the following defects:
- abnormal heart structure (cardiac defect);
- irregular heartbeat (heart arrhythmia);
- abnormal function (functional alterations);
- other rare abnormalities (heart tumours, cardiomyopathy).
Foetal echocardiography should be performed when:
- there is already a child with heart disease in your family;
- any other family member (also distant family members) has a cardiac defect;
- genetic defects are present in family;
- after in vitro fertilisation;
- more than 2 spontaneous miscarriage in anamnesis;
- monochorionic multiple pregnancy is present;
- expectant mother has a congenital heart disease (also after a surgical correction);
- expectant mother has a diabetes, phenylketonuria or systemic connective tissue disorders;
- a thickening of the nape, foetal heart arrhythmia, dislocation of the heart, or other foetal pathology was found between 11th and 14th weeks of pregnancy.
Foetal echo (a type of diagnostic sonography) takes about 20 minutes.
It should be remembered that baby’s heart is the most conspicuous between 18th and 22nd weeks of pregnancy.
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