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The ductus arteriosus, also called the ductus Botalli, named after the Italian physiologist Leonardo Botallo, is a blood vessel in the developing fetus connecting the trunk of the pulmonary artery to the proximal descending aorta. It allows most of the blood from the right ventricle to bypass the fetus's fluid-filled non-functioning lungs.
The fetal circulation is composed of the placenta, umbilical blood vessels encapsulated by the umbilical cord, heart and systemic blood vessels. A major difference between the fetal circulation and postnatal circulation is that the lungs are not used during the fetal stage resulting in the presence of shunts to move oxygenated blood and ...
The ductus arteriosus connects at a junction point that has a low pressure zone (commonly called Bernoulli's principle) created by the inferior curvature (inner radius) of the artery. This low pressure region allows the artery to receive the blood flow from the pulmonary artery which is under a higher pressure. However, it is extremely likely ...
During fetal development, the ductus arteriosus is kept open by high levels of a vasodilator prostaglandin E2 which is made by the placenta and by the ductus arteriosus itself. At birth a bunch of things change, though—oxygen levels in the blood go up dramatically and the lungs become the main source of oxygenated blood.
In the fetus, there is a special connection between the pulmonary artery and the aorta, called the ductus arteriosus, which directs most of this blood away from the lungs (which are not being used for respiration at this point as the fetus is suspended in amniotic fluid). [25]
The ductus arteriosus is a fetal blood vessel that normally closes soon after birth. This closure is caused by vessel constriction immediately after birth as circulation changes occur, followed by the occlusion of the vessel’s lumen in the following days. [1]
Increased cerebral blood flow means an increased risk of berry aneurysms, where weak spots along blood vessels in the brain balloon out from the high pressures and become tiny sacs filled with blood. This increased pressure also tends to cause the aorta and aortic valve to dilate, or get larger, and the increased pressure means the aorta’s at ...
In adults, the ligamentum arteriosum has no useful function. It is a vestige of the ductus arteriosus, a temporary fetal structure that shunts blood from the pulmonary arteries to the aorta. This significantly reduces the volume of blood circulating through the lungs, which are inactive in the womb.