Thoracic Key

Introduction: Morphology This chapter deals with one of the most complex—and difficult to treat surgically—of all congenital cardiac malformations: tetralogy of Fallot with pulmonary atresia. We focus particularly on tetralogy…

The right ventricle (RV) can be hypoplastic in various settings. It can be small in the presence of deficient ventricular or atrioventricular septation, producing so-called left ventricular dominance. The chamber…

Introduction Lev and Eckner made the appropriate statement that no two cases of tetralogy are exactly the same. Although that is fundamentally true, the characteristic anatomy permits its instant recognition…

Introduction The so-called Rathke diagram, showing six pairs of arteries encircling the tracheoesophageal pedicle, is still frequently used to provide an understanding of the morphogenesis of abnormalities of the brachiocephalic…

Introduction The most common congenital malformations afflicting the tricuspid valve are Ebstein malformation and tricuspid valvar dysplasia. These lesions are considered in this chapter, together with a brief look at…

Introduction This chapter considers abnormalities of the pulmonary veins, in particular their anomalous connections to the systemic venous system. The variant of partially anomalous pulmonary venous connection associated with the…

Since the late 1970s, perhaps the most important change in the practice of clinical pediatric cardiology has been the introduction of cross-sectional echocardiography and its subsequent technical improvements. Echocardiography currently…

Introduction Pediatric electrophysiology has evolved into a fully recognized subspecialty within the field of pediatric cardiology, and recent growth has led to the continued expansion of this subsection. The aging…

Introduction Channels permitting shunting between the atrial chambers are important congenital cardiac anomalies because they are relatively common and are more nearly completely correctable than most other cardiac malformations, even…