Diagnosis

Doctors will generally perform an echocardiogram to diagnose double-outlet right ventricle and any associated defects. Echocardiograms use sound waves to produce an image of the heart. Sound waves bounce off the heart and produce moving images that can be viewed on a video screen.

If more information is needed, doctors may conduct cardiac CT and MRI scans or cardiac catheterization. In cardiac catheterization, your child's doctor inserts a thin, flexible tube (catheter) into an artery or vein in the groin or neck and threads it into the heart. A dye is injected through the catheter to make the heart structures more visible on X-ray pictures. Cardiac catheterization also measures pressure and oxygen levels in the chambers of the heart and in the blood vessels.