What is Patent Foramen Ovale?
A patent foramen ovale (PFO) is a congenital heart defect that allows blood to pass between the left and right atria through the atrial septum. This occurs when the atrial septum doesn’t grow closed correctly at birth. It allows venous blood and arterial oxygen-rich blood to mix and be pushed throughout the body with less oxygen than is needed.
| TriHealth.com Health Library: Patent Foramen Ovale | |
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How is Patent Foramen Ovale Treated at TriHealth?
A small PFO in otherwise healthy patients can go untreated. Commonly the PFO will be repaired via surgery, but newer catheter-based options are now available. Treatments for patent formen ovale include:
Cardiac Surgery
Our cardiac specialists perform over 650 heart surgeries every year, including procedures performed using minimally invasive techniques.
Structural Heart Repairs
Our interventional cardiologists boast a 100 percent success rate on catheter-based closure of a patent foramen ovale (PFO).