What happens to children with a severe congenital heart defect at the age of 1 to 4 years?
Social behaviour
Although children with a severe congenital heart defect may have undergone surgery and long hospital stays several times, they usually behave well. However, heart children often suffer long or stormy tantrums, anxiety, and fear of separation. Relating to a heart child in as stress-free a way as possible helps them stay calm. Contact with siblings or other children can also be very helpful.
Movement
Heart children can reach some of the motor milestones, such as free sitting, crawling, and walking, rather later. Physiotherapy can often help your child's motor development. Stay calm when your child takes more time to begin walking. As with healthy children, motor development varies greatly, and each child develops at their own pace. In fact, heart children surprise us again and again by making great motor progress within a short time.
Speaking
It is quite possible that your child will
speak their first words or sentences a little later than a healthy child. For
the most part, this is still within the normal range, and no extra help is
needed. However, language understanding and vocabulary may not develop in line
with age. Your pediatrician and her team at the centre will be happy to advise
you on language development and, if necessary, arrange a speech therapy
assessment or therapy.
Food
Even if eating behaviour in the first year
of life was not easy or even if a tube was necessary, practically all heart
children eat after the first birthday like healthy children and begin to enjoy
eating. As a result, body weight normalises accordingly. The family table not
only provides food but is also important for social development and offers a
piece of everyday normality. For this reason, heart children should definitely
take part at mealtimes.
Sleep
There are no differences from healthy
children.
Getting out of diapers
There are no differences from healthy children.Source
Bea Latal (2016): Neurodevelopmental outcomes of the child with congenital heart disease. Clinics in Perinatology, 43:173–185