Risks and complicationsMild VSDs may heal on their own, or they may remain but cause no complications. There are, however, complications can develop from having an otherwise unbothersome hole. If the hole remains unclosed, there is a small risk of developing endocarditis. This is a heart infection to which people with previous heart conditions are especially susceptible. It is often caused by bacteria introduced during dental procedures, so people with heart problems often take antibiotics before undergoing such procedures. This should not be necessary if the VSD has been surgically closed.
Children with unclosed VSDs are also susceptible to other infections, including the common cold. Mild illnesses can cause a baby with VSD to get sicker than he or she would otherwise.
Finally, since one of the symptoms is low appetite, care must be taken to provide the baby with proper nutrition, because the first years of life are some of the most formative. If the baby does not have proper nutrition during those years, he or she may not develop proper brain function.
Truncus arteriosus occurs when a vessel arises over a large ventricular septal defect. Surgery is usually required to close the defect and separate blood flow to the body and to the lungs.
Single-ventricle defects occur when one of the ventricles is underdeveloped. They include tricuspid valve atresia, hypoplastic left-heart syndrome, hypoplastic right-heart syndrome, mitral valve atresia, and double-inlet ventricle. Treatment includes limited competitive sports, occasional antibiotics to prevent endocardocarditis, and surgery. Sugery often involves shunts, placing a band on the pulmonary artery, or the Fontan Operation, which essentially separates the heart into two circulations. This procedure allows oxygen-poor blood to go to the heart and oxygen-rich blood go to the body.
