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Because the aorta has lower pressure than the pulmonary artery, most of the blood flows across the ductus arteriosus away from the lungs. [1] Once the blood goes through the ductus arteriosus, it mixes with the blood from the aorta. This results in mixed blood oxygen saturation that supplies most of the structures of the lower half of the fetal ...
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.
Functional closure of the ductus arteriosus occurs within the first 24 hours, with permanent closure following within 4 weeks. Lastly cardiac output increases to nearly double what it was in utero. All of these cardiovascular system changes result in the adaptation from fetal circulation patterns to an adult circulation pattern.
The severity of symptoms depends on the type of TGV, and the type and size of other heart defects that may be present (ventricular septal defect, atrial septal defect, or patent ductus arteriosus). Most babies with TGA have blue skin color (cyanosis) in the first hours or days of their lives, since dextro-TGA is the more common type.
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.
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.
A catheter may be inserted into one of the umbilical arteries of critically ill babies for drawing blood for testing. [6] This is a common procedure in neonatal intensive care, and can often be performed until 2 weeks after birth (when the arteries start to decay too much). [7]
The tubular heart quickly differentiates into the truncus arteriosus, bulbus cordis, primitive ventricle, primitive atrium, and the sinus venosus. The truncus arteriosus splits into the ascending aorta and the pulmonary trunk. The bulbus cordis forms part of the ventricles. The sinus venosus connects to the fetal circulation.