Aorta is the artery which carries blood from the heart to whole body.

Sometimes there may be significant narrowing of the vessel immediately after the origin of major arteries to head and neck.

This increases arterial pressure to the upper part of the body.

Similarly there is less blood supply to the lower half of body. The heart works against obstruction leading to sometimes heart failure.

• Higher blood pressure in upper part of the body

• Diminished or no pulse in the lower half of body

• Nasal bleeding

• Generalized weakness, claudicating in the lower limbs

• Cerebral hemorrhage

• Cardiac failure

Surgical approach is through left chest. It is a closed heart procedure. The defect is excised and the two ends are attached together by suturing. Other methods are enlarging that area by a prosthetic patch or the subclavian artery artery. Sometimes, this can be dilated by a balloon by the cardiologists.