persistent fetal circulation


persistent fetal circulation

Abbreviation: PFC
A condition of newborns in which unoxygenated blood is shunted from the right to the left side of the heart through the ductus arteriosus and the foramen ovale, resulting in hypoxemia. It is caused by pulmonary hypertension and occurs most frequently in small-for-gestational-age infants and infants of diabetic mothers. See also: circulation