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ASD Closure Device
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Mercy Angiography Unit together with Auckland Heart Group is pleased to annouce that percutaneous closure of Atrial Septal Defects (ASDs) and Patent Foremen Ovale (PFOs) are now being performed at Mercy Angiography by Auckland Heart Group Interventional Cardiologist Dr Peter Ruygrok (MD, FRACP). Dr Ruygrok is one of the Australasias leading experts in this area
Most of New Zealand Health insurance companies now cover ASD and PFO procedures. This new technique is performed with a small catheter which is passed up to the heart via femoral vein. The patient normally stays overnight and the need for major surgery is completely avoided.
Atrial Septal Defect (ASD)
Atrial Septum is a thin wall that separates the right and the left chambers of the heart. Patients with Atrial Septal Defect (ASD) have an opening in the septum. As a result, oxygenated blood from the left atrium mixes with the deoxygenated blood from the right atrium increasing the total amount of blood flowing through the lungs.The increased blood flow to the lungs creates creates a "swishing sound", known as a heart murmur. This heart murmur, along with other specific heart sounds that can be detected by a cardiologist, may be clues that a patient has an ASD.
ASDs can be located in different places on the atrial septum, and they can also be of different sizes. Therefore, symptoms and medical treatment of the ASD will depend on these factors. In some rare cases, ASDs are part of more complex types of congenital heart disease.
Learn more about Atrial Septal Defects
Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO)
The Patent foramen ovale is a small hole located in the atrial septum, used during fetal circulation to speed up the travel of blood through the heart. A baby does not use it's own lungs for oxygen-rich blood, while inside mothers womb , as it relies on the mother to provide oxygen rich blood from the placenta through the umbilical cord. Therefore, blood can travel from the veins to the right side of the baby's heart and cross to the left side of the heart through the foramen ovale and skip the trip to the baby's lungs.
Under normal circumstances, PFO closes at birth as increased blood pressure on the left side of the heart forces the opening to close. Failure to closure is known as Patent Foramen Ovale.This type of defect generally works like a flap valve, only opening during certain conditions when there is more pressure inside the chest. This increased pressure occurs when people strain while having a bowel movement, cough, or sneeze.
Learn more about Patent Foramen Ovale