Children's Heart Institute | Heart Defects: Transposition of the Great Arteries

The Children's Heart Institute - Hasan Abdallah, M.D.

Congenital Heart Defects:
Transposition of the Great Arteries

Transposition of the Great Arteries is a problem with the hallways coming out of the heart.

In a normal heart the Aortic hallway originates from the Left Ventricle and carries pink blood (with oxygen) from the Left Ventricle to the body. When this defect is present the Aortic hallway originates from Right Ventricle and therefore carries blue blood (no oxygen) to the body.

In a normal heart the Pulmonary hallway originates from the Right Ventricle and carries blue blood back to the heart to receive oxygen. When this defect is present the Pulmonary hallway originates from the Left Ventricle and carries blood full of oxygen back to the lungs. This is a waste of time and resources because that blood does not need to be getting more oxygen.

Symptoms:

A baby born with this defect would be born deeply blue and needs immediate attention because his body is receiving mainly blue blood, or not-oxygenated blood.

Problems with the Walls:
Atrial Septal Defect (ASD) : Fix | Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD) : Fix

Problems with the Doors:
Tricuspid Valve Atresia : Fix 1 | Fix 2 | Fix 3 | Ebstein's Anomaly
Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome : Fix 1 | Fix 2 | Fix 3
Pulmonary Valve Stenosis | Aortic Valve Stenosis

Problems with the Chambers:
Hypoplastic Right Ventricle

Problems with the Hallways:
Coarctation of the Aorta : Fix | Branch Pulmonary Artery Stenosis
Transposition of the Great Arteries : Fixed
Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Connection

Problems with the Plumbing:
Anomalous Origin of the Coronary Arteries from the Pulmonary Artery

Problems Involving More Than One Part of the Heart:
Tetralogy of Fallot : Fixed
Truncus Arteriosus : Fixed | Common Atrioventricular Canal : Fix 1 | Fix 2
Ductus Arteriosus : Fix 1 | Fix 2

<< Back

Next >> Next on the tour you will learn how doctors fix the Transposition of the Great Arteries defect.

Heart Defects Home | Back to the Top