Can you imagine planning for one of the happiest days of your life, and then having all of that change in the blink of an eye? Imagine finding out that your unborn child will be born with a very serious congenital heart defect. I am going to talk to you about a congenital heart defect known as Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome.
             I became interested in hypoplastic left heart syndrome after learning that my nephew would be born with this defect. I believe that it is important to know about HLHS because it is a syndrome that is not well known, but that can affect all of our children. In the next few minutes I will be talking to you about the diagnosis, characteristics and available treatment options for HLHS.
             HLHS is described by the Mayo Clinic as an abnormality in which the left side of your child's heart (left ventricle, aorta, and both the aortic and mitral valves) are severely underdeveloped. HLHS is a heart condition present at birth, it affects the normal blood flow through the heart. According to New York Presbyterian Hospital HLHS is the most common serious heart defects in newborn babies. It is believed to make up 8% of all cases of heart defects present at birth and is likely to show up slightly more frequently in boys than girls.
             Prior to birth HLHS can be found during an ultrasound during the second trimester of pregnancy. Doctors can also use a fetal echocardiogram to get a better idea as to how severe the defect is. After birth if a defect is suspected doctors will use an echocardiogram to diagnose HLHS.
             In babies born without HLHS the right side of the heart pumps oxygen poor blood from the heart to the lungs, and the left side supplies the rest of the body with oxygen rich blood. In babies born with HLHS, the left side of the heart cannot function properly therefore not supplying the blood like it should this lack of supplying blood correctly can leave HLHS babies with a blueish coloring of the lips, and fin...