Total anomalous pulmonary venous return (TAPVR) is a rare heart condition that’s present at birth. That means it’s a congenital heart defect.
Other names for this condition are:
- Total anomalous pulmonary venous connection.
- TAPVC.
In this heart condition, the lung blood vessels, called the pulmonary veins, attach to the wrong place in the heart.
In a typical heart, oxygen-rich blood flows from the lungs to the upper left heart chamber, called the left atrium. Blood then goes to the rest of the body.
In TAPVR, the connection of veins is changed. Blood flows through the upper right heart chamber, called the right atrium. This change in blood flow causes oxygen-poor blood to mix with oxygen-rich blood. As a result, blood flowing to the body doesn’t have enough oxygen.
The type of TAPVR depends on where the veins connect. Most children born with TAPVR have no family history of congenital heart disease.
