RVOT

The right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) is a part of the right ventricle in your heart. This heart chamber handles blood that comes back to your heart from other parts of your body. Your RVOT has a funnel shape and gets narrower as it gets closer to its connection with your main pulmonary artery.

What does the right ventricular outflow tract do?

The RVOT directs blood with low oxygen levels to your pulmonary artery. After blood leaves your heart’s right ventricle, it goes through your pulmonary valve and into the pulmonary arteries. These arteries take blood to your lungs to pick up oxygen.

Your right ventricular outflow tract supports your pulmonary valve’s leaflets. These leaflets attach to RVOT muscle. The leaflets open and close to let blood flow from your right ventricle to your pulmonary artery.

Where is it located?

The RVOT is in your heart’s right ventricle. It starts at the bottom of the chamber and leads up into your pulmonary valve. A wall of muscle sets the right ventricular outflow tract apart from the left ventricle of your heart.

What does it look like?

Part of the right ventricular outflow tract has a tube shape. Some describe it as a muscular sleeve. The walls of your RVOT are smooth, which helps blood move faster.

The whole RVOT is less than 30 millimeters (about 1 inch) wide and under 40 millimeters (about 1.5 inches) high. This is roughly the size of a 9-volt battery.

What are the common conditions and disorders that affect your RVOT?

Conditions that affect your heart muscle and RVOT include:

• Abnormal heart rhythms in your ventricle
• Heart attack
• Heart muscle disease (cardiomyopathy)
• Heart muscle inflammation (myocarditis)
• High blood pressure in your pulmonary arteries (pulmonary hypertension)
• Protein buildup in your heart (cardiac amyloidosis)
• Thickened ventricle walls (right ventricular hypertrophy)
• Weakness in your right ventricle (right-sided heart failure)

Congenital conditions

Conditions you have at birth can affect your heart’s right ventricle. Often, a problem causes muscle in your right ventricle to enlarge from working too hard. Problems in this chamber also affect its outflow tract (RVOT). These conditions include:

• Abnormal tissue dividing the ventricle (double-chambered right ventricle)
• An enlarged ventricle and three other issues (tetralogy of Fallot or ToF)
• Blocked or immature pulmonary valve (pulmonary atresia)
• Hole between your heart’s upper chambers (atrial septal defect)
• Narrow pulmonary valve (pulmonary stenosis)
• Tricuspid valve in the wrong place (Ebstein’s anomaly)
• Two major arteries connecting to your right ventricle (double outlet right ventricle or DORV)

A surgeon may need to reconstruct your RVOT after repairs due to certain heart issues present at birth. These include ToF, pulmonary atresia and DORV. They can cause problems that lead to the need for a new pulmonary valve later in life. This affects your RVOT because the pulmonary valve connects to it.

Symptoms of something not working right

When your RVOT isn’t working well, you may have these symptoms:

• Chest pain
• Dizziness
• Fatigue
• Rapid breathing
• Shortness of breath
• Swelling in your legs

Simple daily habits to keep your heart (including your RVOT) healthy

You can help your heart work at its best by following these tips:

• Avoid tobacco products and other addictive substances.
• Eat foods low in salt and saturated fat.
• Get at least 150 minutes of physical activity each week.
• Manage your stress level.
• Stay at a weight that’s healthy for you.