Cyanotic heart defect

Cyanotic heart defects are a group of heart defects, in which the patient appears blue ( cyanotic ) because deoxygenated blood bypasses the lungs and flows directly back into the systemic circulation. This can be caused by a right-to- left shunt, a bidirectional shunt or by a malposition of the great arteries.

Cyanotic heart defect, representing around 25 % of all heart defects are among others:

  • Tetralogy of Fallot
  • Hypoplastic left heart syndrome ( HLHS )
  • Transposition of the great arteries
  • Eisenmenger reaction ( reversal of the shunt through pulmonary hypertension )
  • Patent ductus arteriosus can cause cyanosis in late stage

Non - cyanotic heart defects

Non - cyanotic heart defects are more common because of the higher number of survival. For them, the shunt first runs from the left ( oxygenated ) to right ( not oxygenated ). These are:

Eisenmenger's syndrome Atrial septal defect
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