ductus arteriosus connects the pulmonary trunk to the aorta during fetal circulation.
ductus arteriosus connects the pulmonary trunk to the aorta during fetal circulation.
what connects the pulmonary trunk to the aorta during fetal circulation?
ductus arteriosus
the pulmonary circulation loop is virtually bypassed in fetal circulation. the fetal lungs are collapsed, and blood passes from the right atrium directly into the left atrium through the foramen ovale: an open conduit between the paired atria, or through the ductus arteriosus: a shunt between the pulmonary artery and the aorta. when the lungs expand at birth, the pulmonary pressure drops and blood is drawn from the right atrium into the right ventricle and through the pulmonary circuit. over the course of several months, the foramen ovale closes, leaving a shallow depression known as the fossa ovalis.









































section::::clinical significance.
pulmonary circulation
the aortic arch loops over the left pulmonary artery and the bifurcation of the pulmonary trunk, to which it remains connected by the ligamentum arteriosum, a remnant of the fetal circulation that is obliterated a few days after birth. in addition to these blood vessels, the aortic arch crosses the left main bronchus. between the aortic arch and the pulmonary trunk is a network of autonomic nerve fibers, the cardiac plexus or "aortic plexus". the left vagus nerve, which passes anterior to the aortic arch, gives off a major branch, the recurrent laryngeal nerve, which loops under the aortic arch just lateral to the ligamentum arteriosum. it then runs back to the neck.
aorta