Endovascular treatment of aortic coarctation

Abstract

Coarctation of the aorta (CoA) is a common cardiovascular lesion (20–60 patients per 100,000 live births), defined as a stenosis of the descending aorta, usually just distal to the origin of the left subclavian artery at the insertion of the ligamentum arteriosum. Coarctation is twice as common in males as in females, and it is associated with other congenital cardiac defects, particularly bicuspid aortic valve disease (in over 50 % of cases), ventricular septal defect and aneurysms of the circle of Willis. CoA is also present in 12–17 % of patients with Turner syndrome.Complications including severe hypertension, aortic dissection, infective endocarditis and severe aortic insufficiency are common and when uncorrected is associated with reduced life expectancy.