Developmental And Functional Correlation Of A Persistent Non-Patent Ligamentum Arteriosum In Adult Human Heart

Ductus arteriosus provides communication between the systemic andpulmonary circulations during the intra-uterine life and soon after birth it undergoes fibrosis to form the ligamentum arteriosum. A persistent patent ductus anteriosus will cause left to right shunt while a persistent non-patent ligamentum arteriosum can go unnoticed till adult life and give rise to a number of clinical manifestations like aneurysm, calcification, diverticuli, etc. We studied 85 heart specimens taken from adult cadavers for the presence of ligamentum arteriosum and found a non-patent ligamentum arteriosum in 8 specimens. We subjected these 8 specimens to morphological, histological and radiological studies and then correlated their clinical manifestations and complications with their developmental aspects.