A baby born with a heart defect may not gain weight as rapidly as other infants, despite your hard work and persistence. This Web site provides information to help you cope with your baby's feeding needs. If your baby has a congenital heart defect , it means the heart or blood vessels near the heart didn't develop normally before birth. Healthy babies usually double their birth weight between four and five months of age. A baby with a congenital heart defect may grow more slowly during infancy and childhood.
Growth often varies according to the type and severity of heart disease.
Congestive heart failure occurs when the heart muscle is doing extra work and can't easily meet the body's needs. Congestive heart failure is usually treated with medicines that help to strengthen the heart muscle's pumping and get rid of excess fluid in the body. Babies with congestive heart failure may grow in height but gain weight slowly. A baby's growth also may be influenced by hereditary or genetic conditions. The most common reason for poor growth is that the baby isn't taking in enough calories or nutrients.