Systemic-to-pulmonary shunt
Template:WikiDoc Cardiology News Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
A systemic-to-pulmonary shunt is a cardiac shunt which allows, or is designed to cause, blood to flow from the systemic circulation to the pulmonary circulation. This occurs when:
- there is a passage between two or more of the great vessels; and,
- systemic pressure is higher than pulmonic pressure and/or the shunt has a one-way valvular opening.
A systemic-to-pulmonary shunt functions as follows:
- left-to-right in the absence of arterioventricular discordance.
- right-to-left if the great vessels are transposed.