Patent arterial duct and vascular ring in a premature infant.

We report a case of a 750 grams premature female who was scheduled for surgical ligation of a patent arterial duct. Intra-operative findings showed a patent arterial duct in association to a retro-esophageal aortic arch creating a complete vascular ring around the trachea, which was successfully divided. A vascular ring should be ruled-out in premature infants prior to ductal ligation at bidimensional echocardiography.