Cardiopathy Diagnosis Decreases Children’s Mortality

“The objective of this procedure is not to interrupt pregnancy but to detect any cardiac anomaly, so we can take measures accordingly”- said Dr. Miguel Pérez Piñero, First Degree Specialist on Infant Cardiology.

The specialist also said that the fetal echocardiography, which allows a detailed analysis of every structures of the baby´s heart, is the main tool for this diagnosis.

 The aforementioned researches, which are part of the Program of Prenatal Diagnosis of Congenital Cardiopathy, are implemented on women during their 20-24 weeks of pregnancy. For that purpose, each of the province’s eight municipalities is equipped with the appropriate technology.

 Sancti Spiritus’s Medical Genetics Center is in charge of the evaluation of the risks of serious cardiovascular malformations as well as the cases considered as suspicious by the specialists on health areas.

 Sancti Spíritus is one of the Cuban territories with higher levels of cardiovascular malformation diagnosis, with more than 60 % of detection of heart diseases that could appear in the first year of life.

 These results are highly influenced by the dedication of the health professionals who have worked both on the consolidation of the program and the training of the staff.

 Congenital cardiopathies are responsible of the 40% of fetal death, which means a provincial incidence of 6 per 1000 born alive. Our country features a national system of institutions specialized on the filed. The most serious patients are sent to Havana’s William Soler hospital. Once the results are ready, the so called genetic council takes place, where the family must decide whether or not to interrupt the pregnancy if the disease is too serious.

 Cuba is the only country in the world where every pregnant woman is submitted to fetal echocardiography tests. They are highly expensive procedures out of the reach of million women in the world.