Endocardial cushion defect

Related Key Words and Synonyms: atrioventricular septal defects, atrioventricular canal defects, AV septal defects, canalis atrioventricularis communis, persistent atrioventricular ostium, abnormal development of endocardial cushions

Overview
Endocardial cushion defects are often called atrioventricular (AV) canal or septal defects. This is not a single defect but a variety of defects that involve the atrial septum, one or both of the atrioventricular valves, or the ventricular septum.

There are two broad classes of defect:
 * 1) Partial defects: There is atrial septal involvement, but there are separate mitral and tricuspid valve orifices.
 * 2) Complete defects: There is the presence of both atrial and ventricular septal defects and there is a common AV valve.

Acknowledgements
The content on this page was first contributed by: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D.