# Anomalous Origin of Left Pulmonary Artery From the Descending Aorta Diagnosed in an Athletic Adult

## TL;DR

A rare heart defect where the left pulmonary artery originates from the aorta was diagnosed in a 27-year-old athlete, managed conservatively with the help of advanced imaging.

## Contribution

Highlights a rare congenital heart anomaly diagnosed in an adult and managed without surgery, emphasizing the role of multimodality imaging.

## Key findings

- Anomalous left pulmonary artery diagnosed in a 27-year-old athletic male with severe segmental pulmonary hypertension.
- Conservative management chosen after multidisciplinary evaluation in a tertiary center.
- Multimodality imaging is critical for diagnosis and management of this rare condition in adults.

## Abstract

Anomalous origin of the left pulmonary artery from the aorta, also named hemitruncus arteriosus, is a rare congenital heart disease associated with high mortality. Patients are usually operated on in the first months of life to avoid irreversible damage caused by pulmonary arterial hypertension.

The authors present a challenging case of an athletic male patient with an anomalous left pulmonary artery originating from the descending aorta that was diagnosed when he was aged 27 years, with severe segmental pulmonary arterial hypertension in the left lung. Following multidisciplinary team meetings, conservative management was chosen.

Multimodality imaging plays a key role in both diagnosing and managing this birth defect and its potential complications.

Management of this extremely rare congenital anomaly in the adult is yet to be fully understood and requires a multidisciplinary team in a tertiary center.