Pulmonary Artery Stenosis

Pulmonary artery stenosis is a heart defect that causes a narrowing of the pulmonary artery, the large blood vessel that takes blood from the right ventricle of the heart to the lungs. This narrowing may force the heart to pump harder, leading to an enlarged heart and high blood pressure in the right side of the heart. In mild cases, there may be no symptoms.

The heart consists of four chambers — the two upper chambers, called atria, where blood enters the heart, and the two lower chambers, called ventricles, where blood is pumped out of the heart.

This condition often is associated with other medical problems, such as congenital heart disease, a genetic abnormality or an infection during pregnancy. Some children and young adults develop these narrowed lung arteries after birth due to a blood-clotting problem.

At UCSF Children's Hospital, our pediatric heart specialists are leaders in diagnosing and treating pulmonary artery stenosis. This condition may be repaired by a non-surgical procedure, called a balloon arterioplasty, and stent repair in our Pediatric Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory. Severe cases may require open-heart surgery.

For more information or to make an appointment, please call:
Pediatric Heart Center (415) 353-2008

For help finding a doctor, please contact our Physician Referral Service:

Reviewed by health care specialists at UCSF Children's Hospital.
Last updated May 25, 2007