TRUNCUS ARTERIOSUS WITH ANTERIOR ORIGIN OF A HYPOPLASTIC MAIN PULMONARY-ARTERY

A newborn with an unusual form of truncus arteriosus is described, who se clinical presentation and certain features of her anatomy were more typical of pulmonary atresia with a ventricular septal defect. The mo rphological differentiation of certain types of truncus arteriosus and pulmonary atresia with ventricular septal defect remains an area of s peculation among cardiac pathologists, and research in this area is be ing done using animal models. The anatomic features of the heart descr ibed in this report may assist in this discussion as the application o f observations made in animal models to human cardiac development may be problematic.