Patent ductus arteriosus overview


 * Associate Editor-In-Chief: Priyamvada Singh, M.B.B.S. [mailto:psingh@perfuse.org],, Assistant Editor-In-Chief: Kristin Feeney, B.S. [mailto:kfeeney@perfuse.org]

Overview
The Patent Ductus Arteriosus or PDA, is a remnant of the distal sixth aortic arch and connects the pulmonary artery at the junction of the main pulmonary artery and the origin of the left pulmonary artery to the proximal descending aorta just after the origin of the left subclavian artery.

Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is a congenital heart defect when a child's ductus arteriosus fails to close after birth, producing a heart murmur described in 1898 by Gibson as the classic machinery murmur. Symptoms include shortness of breath and cardiac arrhythmia, and may progress to congestive heart failure if left uncorrected.