Transposition of the Great Arteries, Long Axis

This model shows a cut through a heart with transposition of the great arteries as it would show in a long axis echo plane. In case of a transposition of the main arteries, the places of the two main arteries are switched. The aorta connects to the right ventricle, instead of the left ventricle. The pulmonary trunc connects to the left ventricle, instead of the right ventricle. Because of this, the pulmonary and the systemic circulation, which are normally connected, are separated. The Oxygen-rich blood in the pulmonary circulation flows through the lungs, then via the left atrium and ventricle back into the pulmonary artery and back into the lungs. Deoxygenated blood flows through the body into the caval veins to the right atrium and ventricle into the aorta, back into the aorta.