What it means
A congenital heart defect in which a section of the aorta, the main artery leaving the heart, is pinched narrow, most often just past the arteries to the head and arms. Blood flows easily to the upper body but poorly to the lower body. Babies with a severe narrowing become ill soon after birth; milder cases may not be found until later in childhood or adulthood. It is fixed by surgery or by widening the narrow part with a balloon.
For the nurse
Part of the assessment is comparing the blood pressure in the arms with the legs and feeling the pulses in the groin (femoral pulses). Report a large difference or weak groin pulses.