Trresh Posted October 3, 2012 Share Posted October 3, 2012 We took my son to see a pediatric cardiologist because he occasionally has chest pains. We found out he has a small hole in his heart which is benign. I'm not freaked about that because his older sister has the same thing. He also said his aorta is mildly enlarged, though. I wasn't expecting to hear that so I wasn't thinking clearly enough to ask many questions. He said neither problem has anything to do with his chest pains. He believes those are muscular in nature. We're to bring him back in 6 months to see if it's getting larger. So...I'm thinking 'mildly' enlarged is not so bad. Do any of you have any experience with such a thing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiramisu Posted October 3, 2012 Share Posted October 3, 2012 I know a child with the same thing. It is the result of relatively recently discovered connective tissue disorder that can affect the blood vessels. Child needed to be put on a low dose of blood pressure medication and get an MRI of his whole body to check the blood vessels. He will get echo-cardiograms and the MRI's repeated periodically. It *may* limit his participation in intense physical activities. I think your first step should be genetic testing for vasular-type connective tissue disorders, as those found in Ehlers-Danlos, Marfan Syndrome, or Loeys-Dietz (surely spelled wrong!). These can run in families or can come from a spontaneous mutation. I feel bad telling you this because it may not apply to your case at all, but you would be on the safe side to check into it. In this child's case, it was completely unexpected, especially since he had been getting care for other issues, and if it hadn't been for one doctor, it may have been completely missed. Although it was a bit of a shock to find this out, the family is very, very thankful to now be are aware of the situation. It doesn't change the child's life, but they do have to monitor. I didn't check to see where you're from, but are you near a major children's hospital? From a mom who has gone through her own kids medical issues, lots of :grouphug:. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reflections Posted October 3, 2012 Share Posted October 3, 2012 :grouphug::grouphug: These things can be so hard. I feel for you and your dc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trresh Posted October 3, 2012 Author Share Posted October 3, 2012 Thank you for the info. I hate having to wait 6 months. I'll check into the disorders/syndromes you listed. The doctor mentioned Marfan Syndrome but before we left he said he felt confident it wasn't that. We live near a pretty good Children's hospital. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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