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About Fetal Heart Development

Home » Diseases » Congenital Heart Disease » About Fetal Heart Development

The fetal heart begins to form shortly after conception. By the end of the second month, the fetal heart is fully formed. Research has shown that congenital heart defects tend to form in this very early stage in pregnancy. Using advanced diagnostic tools, physicians are now able to detect some congenital heart defects before the baby is born.

During pregnancy, the fetal heart differs from the adult heart in some very important ways. Because the fetus does not use its lungs, the right side of the heart, which is responsible for pumping oxygen–poor blood to the lungs in an adult, is bypassed in a fetal heart. Before birth, there are two connections between the right and left sides of the heart.



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