What does it mean if your heart is on the right side?
What is dextrocardia? Dextrocardia is a rare heart condition in which your heart points toward the right side of your chest instead of the left side. Dextrocardia is congenital, which means people are born with this abnormality. Less than 1 percent of the general population is born with dextrocardia.
Can a person live with dextrocardia?
Treatment of Dextrocardia with Situs Inversus is symptomatic and supportive when needed. In most cases, affected individuals can live a normal life without any symptoms or discomfort. If the condition is associated with other more serious heart malformations, the prognosis and treatment will vary.
Can dextrocardia be corrected?
Dextrocardia doesn't need surgery or correction if it's not causing any problems. But babies born with dextrocardia often have heart defects or genetic syndromes. And those defects or syndromes can prevent a baby's heart from functioning as it should. In those cases, surgery may be needed.
How common is dextrocardia?
Dextrocardia is a very rare condition, and studies have revealed incidence rates of dextrocardia to be around 1 in 12000 pregnancies. [7] Kartagener syndrome has an incidence rate of about 1 in 30,000 live births, and situs inversus totalis was seen in around 50% of patients with primary ciliary dyskinesia.
Is dextrocardia serious?
Dextrocardia on its own does not usually cause problems, but it tends to occur with other conditions that can have serious effects on the heart, lungs and other vital organs.
How do you get dextrocardia?
The condition is congenital, meaning that people are born with it, but it's rare. Dextrocardia can also happen when all your visceral organs are on the "wrong" side of the body. For example, the liver and spleen may also be out of their usual position. This type of dextrocardia is called situs inversus.
What gene causes dextrocardia?
The condition seems to be inherited as an autosomal recessive trait. Prognosis is poor. Any atrioventricular septal defect in which the cause of the disease is a mutation in the CRELD1 gene. Primary ciliary dyskinesia is an autosomal recessive disorder resulting from loss of normal ciliary function.
How many people have their heart on the right?
Less than 1 percent of the population has a rare congenital condition called dextrocardia, where the heart is present at the right side of the chest.
Is dextrocardia a congenital heart defect?
Dextrocardia is a condition in which the heart is pointed toward the right side of the chest. Normally, the heart points toward the left. The condition is present at birth (congenital).
How is dextrocardia diagnosed on ECG?
4 In patients with dextrocardia, the standard 12-lead ECG will show marked right-axis deviation of the P wave and QRS complex, with lead I frequently demonstrating a largely negative QRS complex and inverted P and T waves. 5 The QRS complexes in leads aVR and aVL are reversed so that the R wave in lead aVR is positive.
Where do you put ECG leads in dextrocardia?
Similar to a right-sided ECG, use the same physiological landmarks to place the 12-lead electrodes on the right side of the chest. Another consideration for treatment is the placement of pacer or defibrillator pads.
What is the difference between dextrocardia and situs inversus?
In people affected by dextrocardia, the tip of the heart points towards the right side of the chest instead of the left side. Situs inversus refers to the mirror-image reversal of the organs in the chest and abdominal cavity. Some affected people have no obvious signs or symptoms.
Is dextrocardia normal?
In the simplest type of dextrocardia, the heart is a mirror image of the normal heart and there are no other problems. This condition is rare. When this occurs, the organs of the abdomen and the lungs will often also be arranged in a mirror image. For example, the liver will be on the left side instead of the right.
Can the heart repair itself?
The heart is unable to regenerate heart muscle after a heart attack and lost cardiac muscle is replaced by scar tissue. Scar tissue does not contribute to cardiac contractile force and the remaining viable cardiac muscle is thus subject to a greater hemodynamic burden.
Can your heart be in the middle of your chest?
Your heart is located between your lungs in the middle of your chest, behind and slightly to the left of your breastbone (sternum).
Is heart pain on right side?
Chest pain on the left side is typically associated with a heart attack. If you feel any pain on your right side, it's most likely not related to your heart.
Is the heart on the right side?
Inversus situation Dextrocardia Dextrocardia with situs inversus is characterized by the heart being a mirror image on the right side. The exact na...
Can you have an upside-down heart?
Dextrocardia is an uncommon cardiac disorder in which your heart is positioned on the right side of your chest rather than the left. Dextrocardia c...
Do humans have a right-sided heart?
Your heart is situated on the right side of your chest if you have isolated dextrocardia, but it has no additional problems. For example, your live...
Is the right side of the heart normal?
Dextrocardia is a condition in which the heart is positioned on the right side of the chest. Normally, the heart is pointing to the left. The disor...
Why does it feel like my heart is on the right side?
Dextrocardia is a congenital condition, which implies that people are born with it. Less than 1% of the general population suffers with Dextrocardi...
Overview
Right-sided heart failure is one type of heart failure. Right-sided heart failure is also called right ventricular (RV) heart failure or right heart failure.
Symptoms and Causes
Most right-sided heart failure occurs because of left-sided heart failure. The entire heart gradually weakens.
Management and Treatment
Treatment is directed at the cause of your heart failure, and not all causes of right-sided heart failure are curable. But you can treat heart failure and improve your symptoms. Often, a combination of lifestyle changes, medications and heart devices can help you manage heart failure and live an active life.
Prevention
You may not always be able to prevent heart failure. But you can sometimes treat conditions that cause heart failure.
Living With
The most important thing is to make healthy lifestyle habits part of your daily routine. The more you make healthy living part of your new lifestyle, the better you’ll feel. Try to:
Why people have their heart on the right side on the body?
What causes Dextrocardia is the non-dominant genes, also called autosomal recessive genes.
Are there any symptoms of this condition?
There are no symptoms of Isolated Dextrocardia – a condition where the heart is on the right side but without any birth defects. Usually, this condition is found in an MRI or an X-ray of your chest that also shows the location of your heart.
What causes the right side of the heart to enlarge and fail?
Lung disease. Over time, problems in the lungs cause the right side of the heart to enlarge and fail. Your doctor may call this “cor pulmonale.”. Find out more on the link between heart failure and lung disease.
What is the difference between right side and left side heart failure?
When your heart is working normally, it pumps oxygen-rich blood through your lungs and to the rest of your body. The left ventricle, or left chamber, of the heart provides most of the heart’s pumping power. So when you have left-side heart failure, your heart can’t pump enough blood to your body.
What Are the Symptoms?
Your feet, legs, and ankles will likely to swell because blood is backing up in your veins. This symptom is called edema.
How does high blood pressure affect your heart?
It measures how hard your heart pumps blood through your arteries. The higher your blood pressure, the harder your heart is working to pump it. That means over time, your heart muscles can thicken and weaken because of the extra work they do. Learn about the symptoms of high blood pressure. Damaged heart valves.
Why is heart failure so common?
Once they’re too weak, your heart can’t pump the blood that your body needs. And heart failure is so common. It’s one of the main reasons people age 65 and older are admitted to the hospital. It can happen on either the right or left side of your heart.
What causes heart failure?
Coronary artery disease. This is the most common form of heart disease and cause of heart failure. When you have coronary artery disease , plaque blocks your arteries, causing blood flow to your heart muscle to slow or even stop. Read more on clogged arteries and the causes of arterial plaque.
How do you know if you have high blood pressure?
Learn about the symptoms of high blood pressure. Damaged heart valves. Valves keep blood flowing in the right direction through your heart. If they get damaged, by an infection or heart defect, for instance, your heart has to work harder to pump blood. Eventually, it will become weakened.
What is the name of the condition where the apex of the heart is located on the right side of the?
Dextrocardia (from Latin dexter, meaning "right," and Greek kardia, meaning "heart") is a rare congenital condition in which the apex of the heart is located on the right side of the body. There are two main types of dextrocardia: dextrocardia of embryonic arrest (also known as isolated dextrocardia) and dextrocardia situs inversus.
What is the term for a heart defect that occurs in the thorax?
Dextrocardia of embryonic arrest. In this form of dextrocardia, the heart is simply placed further right in the thorax than is normal. It is commonly associated with severe defects of the heart and related abnormalities including pulmonary hypoplasia.
How to diagnose congenital dextrocardia?
Medical diagnosis of the two forms of congenital dextrocardia can be made by ECG or imaging.
Can dextrocardia be fatal?
Certain cardiovascular and pulmonary disorders related to dextrocardia can be life-threatening if left unchecked. Kartagener syndrome may also be present in patients with dextrocardia but this must be in the setting of situs inversus and may include male infertility.
Where should ECG leads be placed?
ECG leads must be placed in reversed positions on a person with dextrocardia. In addition, when defibrillating someone with dextrocardia, the pads should be placed in reverse positions. That is, instead of upper right and lower left, pads should be placed upper left and lower right.
Does dextrocardia cause pulmonary stenosis?
Although statistically people with dextrocardia do not have any medical problems from the disorder, they may be prone to a number of bowel, esophageal, bronchial and cardiovascular disorders (such as double outlet right ventricle, endocardial cushion defect and pulmonary stenosis). Certain cardiovascular and pulmonary disorders related to dextrocardia can be life-threatening if left unchecked
Is dextrocardia situs solitus congenital?
Dextrocardia with situs solitus. In contrast to dextrocardia situs inversus which is only rarely associated with congenital heart disease , dextrocardia situs solitus is often associated with intracardiac anomalies.
What is the condition where the heart points toward the right side of the chest instead of the left side?
Causes and risk factors. Symptoms. Complications. Diagnosis. Treatment and outlook. Dextrocardia is a rare congenital condition where the heart points toward the right side of the chest instead of the left. The condition is usually not life-threatening, although it often occurs alongside more serious complications, ...
What is the term for the heart being moved to the right?
Dextroposition occurs when the heart is displaced or moved to the right. Unlike dextrocardia, the other organs are not mirrored.
How many children have Dextrocardia situs inversus totalis?
Dextrocardia situs inversus totalis affects approximately 1 out of every 10,000 children. Gender, race, and ethnicity do not seem to have any impact on whether or not a person develops the condition.
How many people have dextrocardia?
Dextrocardia affects an estimated 1 out of every 12,000 people. Trusted Source. . Dextrocardia situs inversus totalis affects approximately 1 out of every 10,000 children.
How to diagnose dextrocardia?
Most cases of dextrocardia are diagnosed using an electrocardiogram (EKG) and chest X-ray.
What is the best way to tell if you have dextrocardia?
Often doctors only discover the irregularity while carrying out chest or heart imaging examinations for unrelated complications. However, one telltale symptom of dextrocardia is that people with this condition have maximum heart sounds on the right of the chest instead of the left.
Which side of the heart does dextrocardia point to?
Share on Pinterest. Usually the heart points towards the left side of the body, as shown above. In dextrocardia, the heart points to the right instead. Dextrocardia is a congenital condition, which is present at birth. There are two major types of dextrocardia.
Why is it important to know which side the heart is located?
It is important for both patient and doctor to know on which side the heart and vital organs are located to avoid making errors in diagnosis and treatment. Since the uterus (womb) is in the middle, the heart position should not have any effect on the pregnancy.
Is a right sided heart rare?
Dextrocardia (right sided heart) is uncommon, but not really that rare. It comes in several different variations: a heart that is twisted toward the right and not totally "right sided", a heart that is totally right sided alone, or is associated with reversed abdominal organs (we call this "situs inversus": in such a case the stomach is on ...
Why does my heart turn on the right side of my chest?
Causes. During the early weeks of pregnancy, the baby's heart develops. Sometimes, it turns so that it points to the right side of the chest instead of the left side. The reasons for this are unclear. There are several types of dextrocardia.
Where is the heart on a child's chest?
It is important, however, to let the child's health care provider know the heart is on the right side of the chest. This information can be important in some exams and tests. The type of treatment needed depends on the heart or physical problems the infant may have in addition to dextrocardia.
What is it called when you have a mirror image dextrocardia?
This condition is called Kartagener syndrome . In the more common types of dextrocardia, other heart defects are also present. The most common of these include:
What is it called when the abdominal organs are not working properly?
The most common of these include: The abdominal and chest organs in babies with dextrocardia may be abnormal and may not work correctly. A very serious syndrome that appears with dextrocardia is called heterotaxy. In this condition, many of the organs are not in their usual places and may not work properly.
When dextrocardia appears with other defects in the heart and elsewhere in the body, how well does?
When dextrocardia appears with other defects in the heart and elsewhere in the body, how well the baby does depends on the severity of the other problems.
What are the different types of dextrocardia?
In the more common types of dextrocardia, other heart defects are also present. The most common of these include: 1 Double outlet right ventricle (the aorta connects to the right ventricle instead of to the left ventricle) 2 Endocardial cushion defect (the walls separating all 4 chambers of the heart are poorly formed or absent) 3 Pulmonary stenosis (narrowing of the pulmonary valve) or atresia (pulmonary valve does not form properly) 4 Single ventricle (instead of two ventricles, there is a single ventricle) 5 Transposition of the great vessels (the aorta and pulmonary artery are switched) 6 Ventricular septal defect (hole in the wall that separates the right and left ventricles of the heart)
What happens if a baby has dextrocardia?
If heart defects are present with dextrocardia, the baby will most likely need surgery. Babies who are very ill may need to take medicines before they can have surgery. These medicines help the baby grow larger so surgery is easier to perform.
What is the condition where the heart moves out of its normal position?
Dextrocardia is a heart condition that makes the heart move out of its usual position. It points towards the right side of your chest instead of the left side. The condition is congenital, meaning that people are born with it, but it's rare.
What is the condition that changes the structure and location of the heart?
Dextrocardia is a heart condition that changes the structure and location of the heart. The defects occur during pregnancy as a fetus develops in the womb, but can also be present in adults. The condition occurs in many forms, some of which doctors can correct through surgery if detected early. Other people have no symptoms.
What Causes Dextrocardia?
The heart's anatomy assumes various forms where it may face the opposite side or have defects in its chambers. Flaws in the abdomen, lungs, or chest may also cause the heart to develop facing the other side of the body.
What causes a double outlet right ventricle?
What causes a double outlet right ventricle? Under normal conditions, the aorta connects to the left ventricle. The pulmonary artery connects to the right ventricle. In DORV, both of these arteries flow out of the right ventricle. The problem is that the right ventricle carries blood without oxygen, which then circulates in the body.
What is the name of the artery that carries blood without oxygen to the lungs?
This heart valve disorder involves the pulmonary valve that separates the right ventricle and the pulmonary artery. This is the artery that carries blood without oxygen to the lungs. The valve narrows and doesn't open wide enough to transport blood, limiting the amount that reaches the lungs. This is called stenosis.
What is it called when you have multiple organ defects?
If that's the case, you’re likely to have more problems with other body organs. When you have multiple organ defects, the condition is called heterotaxy syndrome. Dextrocardia occurs in many types.
Which part of the heart pumps blood without oxygen to the lungs?
In this dextrocardia type, the aorta connects to the right ventricle instead of the left ventricle. The right ventricle is the part of the heart that pumps blood without oxygen to the lungs. The left ventricle pumps blood with oxygen to the body. The aorta carries oxygen-rich blood to the body from the heart. No arteries run from the left ventricle responsible for pumping blood to the body.
