How does truncus arteriosus affect me?
Truncus arteriosus causes symptoms of heart failure early in life. If it’s not repaired, severe pulmonary hypertension occurs. If, like almost all adults with this condition, you’ve had surgery, the most important issues are related to the artificial connection between the heart and lungs (pulmonary valve and conduit) and whether the truncal valve (the valve between the left ventricle and the body after surgery) has a significant amount of leakage. If the pulmonary valve has significant leakage or blockage, symptoms could develop (including exercise intolerance and heart rhythm issues).If my defect was repaired in childhood, what can I expect? Almost all adults with truncus arteriosus had surgery in childhood. Surgery is required to close the ventricular septal defect and separate blood flow to the body from blood flow to the lungs. This is generally done early in infancy to prevent high blood pressure from damaging the lungs’ arteries. A patch is used to close the ventricular defect.
