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Medical Encyclopedia

Transposition of the great vessels

Transposition of the great vessels is a congenital heart defect in which the position of the two major vessels that carry blood away from the heart - the aorta and the pulmonary artery - is switched (transposed). This defect is classified as a cyanotic heart defect because the condition results in insufficiently oxygenated blood pumped to the body which leads to cyanosis (a bluish-purple coloration to the skin) and shortness of breath.

Update Date: 12/13/2006

Updated by: Anne J. L. Chun, M.D., Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Cardiology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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