Physiologie - physiopathologie et pathologie cardiovasculaire fœtale

At present, cardiopathies may be diagnosed in utero. Such heart diseases significantly modify the heart architecture and represent about half of all cardiopathies. The therapeutic management of neonatal cardiac emergencies has greatly improved these last 15 years: above all, by the generalisation of E₁ prostaglandin use for ductus-dependent cardiopathies, then by the development of interventional catheterisation, and finally by generalising the antenatal diagnosis of congenital cardiopathies, which subsequently allows adequate perinatal therapeutic management. The present article aims at explaining, on the basis of the physiology of foetal circulation, the risk of development or aggravation of some congenital cardiopathies. It presents also the therapeutic management that is to be considered with respect to congenital cardiopathies diagnosed in utero.