The atrial septal defect-patent ductus arteriosus complex.

Both atrial septal defect and patent ductus arteriosus are common isolated lesions, each accounting for approximately 10% of the total incidence of congenital heart diseases. Yet, the combination of these defects, without other significant cardiac lesions, is infrequent. We review the clinical and pathologic data on 16 patients with this combination of defects, including cardiac catheterization data on eight patients. In patients with this combination, we found an unusually high incidence of severe pulmonary hypertension, multiple noncardiac anomalies, mental retardation, and early mortality.