patent ductus arteriosus

patent ductus arteriosus

      congenital heart defect characterized by the persistence of the ductus arteriosus, a channel that shunts blood between the pulmonary artery and the aorta. Normally, after birth the pulmonary artery carries blood depleted of oxygen and laden with carbon dioxide from the right ventricle (lower chamber) of the heart to the lungs, where the excess carbon dioxide is removed from the blood and replaced with oxygen. Before birth the fetus depends upon its mother's circulation for this function and not on its own lungs. Consequently, most of the blood pumped into the pulmonary artery is shunted through the ductus arteriosus into the aorta for distribution into the general circulation. Normally, at birth the ductus arteriosus constricts and closes, becoming a fibromuscular cord.

      If the passageway is large, it can have serious effects, acting as a shunt that carries blood from the aorta into the pulmonary artery. This reversal of the shunt pathway occurs because, as a normal part of the changes from fetal to postnatal circulation, the blood pressure in the aorta rises greatly, while that in the pulmonary artery falls. As a consequence of this shunt, the blood may be routed two or three times from the left ventricle to the lungs before it follows its normal course into the systemic circulation. The left side of the heart is thus greatly overworked and becomes enlarged, and the lungs become congested and their network of blood vessels becomes damaged from excessive blood pressure. As a result, the body is deprived of adequate oxygen during exertion—or, in extreme cases, even during rest. The oxygen deprivation is indicated by cyanosis (a bluish discoloration of the skin).

      Patent ductus arteriosus is diagnosed from characteristic abnormalities of the heart sounds. Infants with the defect can be treated with drugs that effectively close the shunt in many cases. If drug therapy is unsuccessful, the ductus can be closed by the insertion of a prosthesis by cardiac catheterization. Rarely, surgical ligation is required.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Patent ductus arteriosus — Classification and external resources Heart cross section with PDA ICD 10 Q …   Wikipedia

  • patent ductus arteriosus — see ductus arteriosus …   Medical dictionary

  • patent ductus arteriosus — see ductus arteriosus …   The new mediacal dictionary

  • patent ductus arteriosus — pa·tent ductus arteriosus pāt ənt n an abnormal condition in which the ductus arteriosus fails to close after birth * * * (PDA) abnormal persistence of an open lumen in the ductus arteriosus after birth, the direction of flow being from the aorta …   Medical dictionary

  • patent ductus arteriosus — noun a ductus arteriosus that failed to close at birth; may require surgical correction • Hypernyms: ↑ductus arteriosus …   Useful english dictionary

  • Ductus arteriosus — Artery: Ductus arteriosus Plan of the fetal circulation. ( Ductus arteriosus visible at upper right.) …   Wikipedia

  • Ductus arteriosus — A key arterial shunt (ductus) in fetal life. Before birth, blood pumped from the heart through the pulmonary artery toward the lungs is shunted into the aorta. This arterial shunt is a short vessel called the ductus arteriosus. When the shunt is… …   Medical dictionary

  • Ductus arteriosus — Herz eines Hundes, Nr. 6 zum Ligamentum arteriosum zurückgebildeter Ductus arteriosus Der Ductus arteriosus (auch Ductus arteriosus Botalli oder Ductus Botalli genannt), stellt im fetalen (vorgeburtlichen) Blutkreislauf eine Verbindung zwischen… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Ductus arteriosus Botalli — Herz eines Hundes, Nr. 6 zum Ligamentum arteriosum zurückgebildeter Ductus arteriosus Der Ductus arteriosus (auch Ductus arteriosus Botalli oder Ductus Botalli genannt, nach Leonardo Botallo) stellt im fetalen (vorgeburtlichen) Blutkreislauf eine …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • ductus arteriosus — Channel between the pulmonary artery and the aorta in the fetus, which bypasses the lungs to distribute oxygen received through the placenta from the mother s blood. It normally closes once the baby is born and the lungs inflate, separating the… …   Universalium

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”