truncus arteriosus…

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heart, section, the middle, truncus, truncus arteriosus, rare type of congenital heart disease characterized by a single blood vessel arising, right, left ventricles, the normal two, pulmonary artery, aorta, three subtypes of truncus arteriosus, depending on the specific anatomy, the single vessel, in normal circulation, pulmonary artery arises, right ventricle, aorta arises, left ventricle, separate from each other, coronary arteries, supply the heart muscle, arise, aorta, above the valve, entrance, the aorta, in truncus arteriosus, a single arterial trunk arises, ventricles, a large ventricular septal defect, hole between the two ventricles, a truncus defect, essentially making the right, left ventricles into a single chamber, the blue, unoxygenated, red, oxygenated, blood mixing completely, of this mixed blood goes, lungs, coronary arteries, rest, whether more blood goes, body versus the lungs is determined by the pressures, in the two places, generally the pressure is much lower, in the lungs than, too much blood gets pumped, lungs, flooding them, fluid, left untreated, increased blood flow causes, two problems, lungs, filled, fluid, making it difficult to breathe, second problem is more long term, lungs get too much blood, vessels there, become narrowed, permanently damaged, point where they, narrow the heart, no longer force blood into them, pulmonary hypertension, life-threatening, lethargy, poor feeding, shortness of breath, dyspnea, rapid breathing, tachypnea, fatigue, cyanosis, blue discoloration of skin, delayed growth, growth failure, broadening, the finger tips, clubbing, cardiologist, pediatrician, hears a murmur, listening, heart, a stethoscope, an ecg shows signs of enlargement, the heart, ventricular hypertrophy, an x-ray, the chest shows heart enlargement, fluid-filled lungs, an echocardiogram shows a ventricular septal defect, vsd, a single truncal artery, definitive diagnosis, a heart catheterization is necessary to help, the diagnosis, planning of a treatment strategy, surgery is needed to treat this condition, two procedures, one is banding, the pulmonary arteries coming off the truncus, is complete repair, complete repair appears to be the preferred option but, the child grows, repeat surgical procedures necessary, complete repair, affords good results, re-operation is sometimes necessary, the patient grows, untreated cases have a poor outcome, death between the, second years of life, the diagnosis is missed, early adulthood, patients generally need a heart, a lung transplant, heart failure, pulmonary hypertension, high blood pressure, in the lungs, infant, child appears lethargic, does not eat well, appears excessively tired, mildly short of breath, growing, developing, child's skin, lips, nail beds appear blue, child seems significantly short of breath, take the child, have the child examined promptly, no known prevention, early treatment, prevent serious complications.