Frequency of Etiological Factors Leading to Patent Ductus Arteriosus

Abstract Background:  Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA) is dev-eloping as major problem in our society. Many studies in Pakistan has been done to analyze the efficacy of surgical procedures but no one tried to find the fre-quency of factors leading to this problem. Objective:  The purpose of this study was to find out the frequency of factors leading to patent ductus arte-riosus in children presented at Punjab Institute of Car-diology. Method:   A cross sectional study was conducted on 242 patients of PDA who already have been treated during the year 2006 - 2007. They were interviewed on their regular follow up visits. Their operative infor-mation was gathered from their files. Results: Mean age of children at time of treatment was 6.12 + 5.203 years. Out of 242 children, there were more female (62.8%) as compared to male (37.2%). In this study, 17.8% children inherited the disease from their close relatives and 105 (43.4%) mo-thers had some infectious problems during pregnancy. 103 (42.6%) mothers used antibiotics or other drugs during pregnancy. 11 (4.5%) children had Down synd-rome. One hundred and thirty seven (56.61%) children had premature birth. Conclusion:   Female gender, preterm birth, infection during pregnancy, mother's exposure to drugs and smoking, low birth weight may be etiological factors for development of PDA. Key Words:   Etiological factors, Patent Ductus Arte-riosus, surgical ligation, catheter based procedure.