education
According to CHOP, with the CHD coarctation of the aorta in children, the portion of the aorta just after the upper-body arteries branch off is too narrow; this results in reduced blood flow to the lower body.
Because of this narrowing, the left ventricle of the heart must pump much harder than normal to move blood through the aorta to the lower body. This can lead to damage to the heart (heart failure) and high blood pressure in the heart and brain. It can also damage the organs in the lower body that don’t get enough blood.
In severe cases, coarctation of the aorta symptoms will appear within the first few days of life. The more the aorta is narrowed, the more severe the symptoms will be.
In infants where the coarctation of the aorta is severe or moderate, symptoms can include:
- Labored or rapid breathing
- Weak femoral artery pulse (taken in the groin area)
- Heavy sweating
- Poor growth
- Pale or gray appearance
- Heart murmur: extra heart sound heard when the doctor listens with a stethoscope
Coarctation of the aorta may require either cardiac catheterization or open heart surgery, depending on the severity of the narrowing and on other factors such as your child’s age and overall health.
Surgeons can remove the narrowed section of the aorta and then sew the ends of the aorta back together, or they can enlarge the aorta with a patch.
During cardiac catheterization, a cardiologist will thread a thin tube (catheter) with a balloon on the end of it through an artery in the leg up to the heart. Then, using the catheter, the cardiologist can inflate the balloon in the narrowed section of the aorta to stretch it. She might also place a stent, or a stiff metal cage, to keep it open.
