Answer – Pulmonary Edema
Development of heart failure coupled
with marked dyspnea at rest in a 4-month old infant who has a congenital heart
defect can be attributed to pulmonary edema. The increase in the infant’s blood
volume and pressure in the lungs resulting from left ventricular failure causes
pulmonary edema. The dyspnea, and early sign of heart failure, is probably
caused by the decreased distensibility of the lungs.
