Strong Heart and Vascular Center

Cardiac Catheterization Labs

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Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO)

The foramen ovale is an opening present while in your mother’s womb. At birth or shortly after, for about 80% of the population, this opening will close. For the remaining 20%, this piece of tissue, which is like a flap, never seals closed and it is referred to as a patent foramen ovale (PFO). The flap has been compared to a valve, which opens when pressure changes inside the heart, such as straining.

Many people who have a PFO are unaware they have it and will never have any problems related to the hole. If the flap is open, blood may travel from the right atrium to the left atrium (the upper chambers of the heart).
In a rare case, there is a blood clot present that may travel through the hole to the other side of the heart and to the brain, which may cause a stroke or mini-stroke. It could also travel to a heart artery, causing a heart attack. 

Most PFOs do not need to be repaired. If you and your physician decide that this should be repaired, there are two options: surgical or percutaneous (a hollow tube called a catheter is threaded to the heart through a leg vein). 

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