Nearly 1 in 100 children has some type of congenital (present at birth) heart defect. The Fetal Cardiology Program at Norton Children’s Heart Institute, affiliated with the UofL School of Medicine, provides diagnoses of congenital heart defects before birth. Finding a congenital heart defect before birth can improve a baby’s health and help the family prepare and plan for the baby’s care.
Fetal Echocardiograms Find Heart Defects
The Fetal Cardiology Program uses a fetal echocardiogram to diagnose a congenital heart defect before a baby is born. An echocardiogram can show:
- Blood flow through the heart
- Structures in the baby’s heart
This noninvasive test uses ultrasound waves and is safe for both mother and baby. Our pediatric cardiologists can perform a fetal echocardiogram during the second or third trimester of pregnancy.
Norton Children’s offers fetal echocardiograms at six locations in Louisville, Central and Western Kentucky. At all Louisville locations, our fetal echocardiogram sonographers are on-site to perform the test. At our four other Kentucky locations outside of Louisville, the echocardiogram images are transmitted to Louisville immediately, where they are reviewed by one of our board-certified pediatric cardiologists.
