Vascular Ring: Report of an Autopsy Case

Abstract

Authors describe an autopsy case of a 1 month old female infant with symptomatic vascular ring of the aortic arch. The vascular ring was formed by the right aortic arch and left-sided ductus arteriosus connected to the distal part of left aortic arch. Proximal part of aortic arch was not recognizable. Major branches of the arch were, from before backward, the left common carotid artery, the right common carotid artery, the right subclavian artery, and the left subclavian artery arising from a diverticulum of the aorta into which the left ductus inserted. The intracardiac anomalies of ventricular septal defect and persistent foramen ovale were present. The patient suffered from dyspnea, cough, cyanosis on crying and signs of pneumonia, and the)' could be explained partly by the tracheoesophageal compression of the vascular ring.