My 7-year-old child is about to undergo heart valve surgery. Doctor, can my child play sports after surgery and how should he exercise? (Thuy Anh, Ho Chi Minh City)
Reply:
Congenital heart surgery is an operation performed to repair defects in the heart chambers, heart valves, heart walls, and large blood vessels that supply the heart. Some common congenital heart surgeries include closing ventricular septal defects or atrial septal defects, closing a patent ductus arteriosus, repairing or replacing heart valves, and repairing tetralogy of Fallot...
After surgery, along with special care for pain relief and nutrition, parents need to develop a reasonable exercise regimen for their children to avoid damaging the surgical wound and help them recover faster. Specifically, exercise guidelines for children of different ages are as follows:
For children under 1 year old
In the first 2 weeks after surgery: Change the child's position frequently to avoid mucus stagnation, avoid collapsed lungs, increase blood circulation; avoid activities that may affect the surgical wound such as letting the child lie on his stomach, lie in an electric hammock, crawl...
In the next 4 weeks : Let your baby move gently; avoid letting your baby roll over, crawl, or sit in a walker...
In the next 8 weeks: Children can move and do activities as usual; be careful to avoid activities that impact the child's chest area such as falling, impact...
For children over 1 year old and adolescents
In the first 2 weeks after surgery : Do not let your child lie on his stomach, move his arms and legs too much or play sports.
For the next 4 weeks : Do not let your child push or pull heavy objects; can exercise gently but avoid moving the arms too vigorously; do not run or jump too much, do not climb stairs more than 2 floors.
In the next 8 weeks : Children can go to school and live normally; avoid activities that can cause impact to the chest area such as playing soccer, martial arts, basketball, volleyball...
Your 7-year-old child is about to undergo heart valve surgery. During the post-operative period and the first 12 weeks after surgery, you need to follow your doctor's instructions on an appropriate exercise regimen for your child. After this period, your child can return to normal activities, exercise or play moderate sports. However, you should start with gentle exercises such as walking, cycling, yoga..., then gradually increase the intensity of the exercise and move on to playing badminton, swimming, soccer... when your child's health is completely stable.
While your child is playing sports, be careful not to overexert yourself, and advise your child to rest when you feel tired. Children after heart surgery should not exercise in weather that is too hot or too cold because it can easily affect blood pressure and increase the risk of other cardiovascular diseases. It is best to take your child for regular check-ups and re-examinations. Depending on the results of each re-examination: whether the child still has residual valve stenosis or regurgitation, pulmonary hypertension or pericardial effusion, the doctor will advise on exercises appropriate to the child's physical condition.
After heart surgery, children need to be monitored for almost their entire life to detect abnormalities early and promptly handle any recurrences. Parents should encourage their children to eat scientifically and exercise regularly. This is a manifestation of a healthy lifestyle that children should maintain until adulthood.
MD.CKI Pham Thuc Minh Thuy
Congenital Heart Department, Cardiovascular Center, Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City
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