JEDDAH, 24 June 2004 — The General Director of Health Affairs in Makkah region, Dr. Adnan Albar, yesterday opened a lung and heart resuscitation center for newborn babies and infants at the Children and Maternity Hospital in Makkah.
Dr. Hussein Ghannam, the hospital’s manager, said this center is the first of its kind in a public hospital. This special center will focus on both patient treatment and education of medical professionals, following a program approved by the American Heart Association and the Saudi Heart Association, targeting children up to the age of eight.
There are two types of heart disease in children, congenital and acquired. Congenital heart diseases, also known as congenital heart defects, are present at birth. Acquired heart diseases develop sometime during childhood. These include diseases such as Kawasaki disease, rheumatic fever and infective endocarditis.
Many parents feel guilty about congenital heart defects, but medical professionals advise that there is nothing that could have been done to prevent these abnormalities. Recent progress in diagnosis and surgery makes it possible to fix most defects, even those once thought to be hopeless. However, many children with heart or blood vessel defects don’t need surgery. And some children who need surgery can benefit from medical treatment before and after an operation.
Many medical treatments are available to help the heart work properly. For a child to grow and develop, the heart needs to maintain normal pump function, to provide optimal blood flow throughout the body. Heart defects and diseases may create conditions where sometimes the heart of a child may not function normally. The term “heart failure” describes a heart that’s not functioning properly. It does not mean that the heart has stopped working, but that it is not working as well as it should. Since heart failure has different causes and outcomes, early diagnosis and treatment is essential if there is to be any chance of a cure.
