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Investigations

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

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Features include :

  • chest radiography shows a prominent pulmonary artery, an enlarged right heart, pulmonary plethora - excessive pulmonary blood flow.
  • in the common ostium secundum defect the axis may be normal or shifted to the right. In the ostium primum defect there is left axis shift.
  • echocardiogram permits visualisation of the atrial septal defect and demonstrates any dilatation of the right heart.
  • doppler studies may show possible flow disturbance.
  • cardiac catheterization confirms the diagnosis - serial measurements of oxygen saturation up the vena cava show an abrupt step at the level of the right atrium.

Click here for example ECGs and further information


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