Question

Which of the following patients with congenital heart disease would be expected to exhibit cyanosis?

A) A 2 yo girl with Tetralogy of Fallot
B) A 6 yo girl with Turner's syndrome and coarctation of the aorta
C) A term newborn with truncus arteriosus
D) An 18 month boy with a ventricular septal defect
E) A 10 yo boy with a congenital ASD

Answer 1

A 2-year-old girl with Tetralogy of Fallot would be expected to exhibit cyanosis due to the mixture of oxygen-poor and oxygen-rich blood, leading to a blueish coloration of the skin.

Step-by-step explanation:

Among the patients listed with congenital heart defects, the one who would be expected to exhibit cyanosis is A) A 2-year-old girl with Tetralogy of Fallot. Tetralogy of Fallot includes four anatomical abnormalities of the heart, although only three may be present in any individual patient. It includes pulmonary infundibular stenosis (rigidity of the pulmonary valve), overriding aorta (the aorta is shifted above both ventricles), ventricular septal defect (opening), and right ventricular hypertrophy (enlargement of the right ventricle). This condition can lead to a mixture of oxygen-poor and oxygen-rich blood entering the systemic circulation, and as a result, cause cyanosis, which is a blue or purple coloration of the skin. Cyanosis following birth is most commonly associated with Tetralogy of Fallot.