by Cynthia M. Johnson, MA
Pulmonary atresia (PA) is a rare heart defect. It is when the heart does not have a pulmonary valve. This prevents blood from flowing into the pulmonary artery. This is the artery that brings blood to the lungs. Other heart problems may also be present.
PA is present at birth. It is not known exactly why the heart does not form as it should.
Things that may raise the risk of this problem are:
Problems may be:
The doctor will ask about your child's symptoms and health history. A physical exam will be done.
Pictures may be taken of your child's chest. This can be done with:
The goal of treatment is to repair the heart defect and improve blood flow to the lungs. Some defects may be so severe that they are hard to treat. Choices are:
Medicine will be given to keep a vessel that connects the pulmonary artery and the aorta open. This opening lets some blood flow to the lungs. This is a short-term treatment.
Sometimes a shunt can be placed between the aorta and pulmonary artery. This is done as short-term treatment to help blood flow to the lungs.
The surgery chosen depends on the size of the pulmonary artery and right ventricle. It also depends on whether a child has other heart defects.
Open heart surgery choices may be to:
When the right ventricle is too small to pump blood, other surgeries may be done. These can reroute blood to the lungs.
Lifelong monitoring will be needed by a heart specialist.
There are no guidelines to prevent this health problem.
American Heart Association
Healthy Children—American Academy of Pediatrics
Canadian Cardiovascular Society
Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada
Monaco M, Williams I. Tetralogy of Fallot: fetal diagnosis to surgical correction. Minerva Pediatr. 2012 Oct;64(5):461-470.
Single ventricle defects. American Heart Association website. Available at:
...(Click grey area to select URL)
Accessed November 5, 2020.
Tetralogy of Fallot in infants and children. EBSCO DynaMed website. Available at: https://www.dynamed.com/condition/tetralogy-of-fallot-in-infants-and-children. Accessed November 5, 2020.
Last reviewed September 2020 by EBSCO Medical Review Board Kari Kassir, MD
Last Updated: 5/11/2021
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