Ventricle Heart Essay

Functionally single ventricle hearts are a heterogeneous group of cardiac anomalies commonly characterized by a dominant morphological left or right ventricle. There are several subtypes: univentricular atrioventricular connection (such as double inlet ventricle), atriventricular valve severe stenosis or atresia (as in triscuspid or mitral atresia) and severe hypoplasia of one of the in the presence of atrioventricular or ventriculo-arterial connection abnormalities (like unbalanced atrioventricular septal defect or double outlet right ventricle) (Kaulitz & Hofbeck 2005) Initial surgical palliation is targeted towards assurance of the patency of the systemic outflow without obstruction and controlling the pulmonary circulation (Khairy et al. 2007). The early stage might be variable depending on the anatomy; subsequently superior cavopulmonary anastomosis (Glenn procedure) is typically performed followed by total cavopulmonary anastomosis (Fontan procedure). RV is the dominant chamber in fetal life transitioning to LV dominance after birth. LV geometry is intended to be the systemic ventricle with its ellipsoid shape and thick walls. On the other hand, RV cavity has three parts: inlet, apical trabecular, and outlet (Dell’Italia 2012). It is intended to generate the same cardiac output
The use of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) have been shown to be of no benefit in regard to exercise performance post Fontan (Kouatli et al. 1997). Moreover, in a recent Pediatric Heart Network study, the use of ACEIs before cavopulmonary connection surgery found no difference in somatic growth and did not impact the ventricular performance (Hsu & Pearson 2009b). Likewise, B-blockade agents specifically Carvedilol failed to significantly improve heart failure symptoms and even may be unfavorable to single right ventricular morphology (Shaddy et al.