Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA)

Mostly, in premature infants, the medicine indomethacin can play a significant role in closing the PDA. The major reason is that Indomethacin stimulates the muscles inside the PDA to tighten. Therefore, the connection will be gradually closed. Medicines can also help the heart and lungs work properly. Sometimes, patients may need to take diuretics; they help the kidneys remove extra fluid from the body. Doctors usually prescribe such medicines when the heart is not working well or the blood vessels in the lungs have to make room for more blood flow.

Majority of babies with PDA eat and grow normally. Nonetheless, premature infants or those kids with large PDAs get so tired when feeding. Thus, they can’t eat enough to gain weight. In such cases, nutrition options are:

• High-calorie supplements: Some specific nutritional supplements can be added to formula or pumped breastmilk to increase the number of calories the baby takes.

• Supplemental tube feedings: They are generally given through a small flexible tube. They simply pass through the nose, down the food pipe and into the stomach. They can either be added to or replace bottle-feedings. This technique is usually employed for infants who are tired to bottle-feed.

Naturally, left side of the heart pumps blood to the body and the right side is responsible for pumping blood to the lungs. In a child suffering from PDA, too much blood is pumped from the aorta into the lung arteries. If the PDA is large, the extra blood won’t let the heart and lungs work properly.  

It highly depends on the severity of the defect. If the PDA is small, or has been treated through catheterization or surgery, your child might not have any special limitation about doing physical activities. However, the cardiologist may notice some problems in the follow-up appointments and restrict the activities your child does on a regular basis.
 

Indeed, small PDAs won’t need to be treated because they have not caused any serious problem so far. Nonetheless, if the heart and lungs are not working well, cardiologists will recommend some treatments to address the problem as soon as possible. Surgery is an effective solution for most patients. To carry out the operation, surgeons won’t open the heart to repair the PDA. They make an incision in the left side of the chest, between the ribs. Then, doctors will close the PDA by tying it with some stitches. Afterwards, the blood circulation will be normal.