Biomaterial Database

Postmortem demonstration of intrapulmonary arteriovenous shunting. 1990

M J Wilkinson, and D G Fagan

Department of Histopathology, University of Nottingham Medical School.

The measurement of the pressure required to drive a 2% solution of gelatin across the pulmonary vascular bed of a group of 49 infants dying suddenly at less than 44 weeks' postnatal age, has shown the presence of low pressure arteriovenous shunting in 30 cases (61%). Injection of polymethylmethacrylate beads in three cases has demonstrated that the vessels that form the shunts are up to 60 microns in diameter. The presence of vessels allowing shunting at pressures as low as 0.1 kPa (1 cm H2O) could severely compromise the gas exchange function of the lung.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007223	Infant	A child between 1 and 23 months of age.	Infants
D007231	Infant, Newborn	An infant during the first 28 days after birth.	Neonate,Newborns,Infants, Newborn,Neonates,Newborn,Newborn Infant,Newborn Infants
D008168	Lung	Either of the pair of organs occupying the cavity of the thorax that effect the aeration of the blood.	Lungs
D011312	Pressure	A type of stress exerted uniformly in all directions. Its measure is the force exerted per unit area. (McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 6th ed)	Pressures
D011651	Pulmonary Artery	The short wide vessel arising from the conus arteriosus of the right ventricle and conveying unaerated blood to the lungs.	Arteries, Pulmonary,Artery, Pulmonary,Pulmonary Arteries
D011659	Pulmonary Gas Exchange	The exchange of OXYGEN and CARBON DIOXIDE between alveolar air and pulmonary capillary blood that occurs across the BLOOD-AIR BARRIER.	Exchange, Pulmonary Gas,Gas Exchange, Pulmonary
D011667	Pulmonary Veins	The veins that return the oxygenated blood from the lungs to the left atrium of the heart.	Pulmonary Vein,Vein, Pulmonary,Veins, Pulmonary
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D001165	Arteriovenous Malformations	Abnormal formation of blood vessels that shunt arterial blood directly into veins without passing through the CAPILLARIES. They usually are crooked, dilated, and with thick vessel walls. A common type is the congenital arteriovenous fistula. The lack of blood flow and oxygen in the capillaries can lead to tissue damage in the affected areas.	Arteriovenous Malformation,Malformation, Arteriovenous,Malformations, Arteriovenous
D001344	Autopsy	Postmortem examination of the body.	Autopsies,Post-Mortem Examination,Postmortem Examination,Examination, Post-Mortem,Examination, Postmortem,Examinations, Post-Mortem,Examinations, Postmortem,Post Mortem Examination,Post-Mortem Examinations,Postmortem Examinations