Tetralogy Of Fallot Essay

Tetralogy of Fallot is a critical congenital heart defect that is presented at birth and alters the lives of families around the world. To many, TOF could be seen as inferior to other illnesses and defects due to a lack of comprehension towards the condition itself. Tetralogy of Fallot is an unfamiliar defect caused by a lack of blood flow and inconsistencies in the heart's structure, leading to the “blue baby”. TOF is often detected after an abnormal heart murmur has been picked up during an ultrasound during pregnancy. The key to spreading awareness in any sort is public and communal education. Informing the public on this illness along with many others, that is held amongst many, is important in order to elucidate and bring light to this illness that is jeopardizing a majority of our world's children, such as my son. Tetralogy of Fallot is a congenital

Ventricular septal defect, where the septum has a “hole”, allowing blood to mix which creates dysfunctions within. The Overriding Aorta is that of which the aorta is between the left and ventricles, whereas in a healthy heart, the aorta is attached to the left ventricle. Pulmonary stenosis is where the pulmonary valve is much smaller, causing a lack of blood flow. The Right Ventricular Hypertrophy is where the muscle of the right ventricle is more rampant than it would be in a healthy heart, again causing an anomaly in blood flow.(NIH, 2011). These defects makeup TOF and show differences in the blood flow and abnormal pressures in the heart in different ways. In most cases, a child undergoing TOF will be seen as cyanotic, or a blue color due to lack of oxygen. This is because blood that lacks oxygen is darker, therefore making the child seem as though they are “tinted” blue. (Cincinnati Children’s H., 2015) After a child with Tetralogy of Fallot is born, measures must be taken almost immediately to insure that this lack of blood flow is aided in some