Kolkata: A 12-day-old born with a rare and life-threatening congenital heart defect was successfully treated at a city pvt hospital following timely diagnosis and an emergency cardiac surgery. The disease – infracardiac Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Connection (TAPVC) – constitutes less than 1% of all congenital heart anomalies and can only be treated surgically at early infancy.The baby was brought to BP Poddar Hospital from Malda in severe respiratory distress on May 30. After arrival, a comprehensive clinical evaluation was done and echocardiography revealed TAPVC, a rare congenital cardiac anomaly requiring immediate surgical intervention. The neonate underwent an emergency corrective surgery on June 4, conducted by by Rashid Zeya Ayubi, consultant CTVS Surgeon. The six-hour procedure was completed successfully and the baby was shifted for postoperative care in a stable condition. The baby was discharged form hospital on July 1, after nearly a month under observation.Explaining the clinical complexity, Rashid said, ”Obstructive Infracardiac Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Connection (TAPVC) is a rare congenital cardiac anomaly, accounting for less than 1% of all congenital heart diseases, with an estimated incidence of 7 to 9 per 100,000 live births. In this condition, pulmonary veins drain abnormally below the diaphragm into systemic venous channels instead of the left atrium. The obstructive nature leads to severe pulmonary venous congestion and rapid clinical deterioration, making it a surgical emergency in early infancy.”The baby’s condition began deteriorating on the fourth day after birth with fever and increasing breathing difficulty, said the baby’s father Suvankar Mishra, a fruit-seller.
