Project description:Left ventricular reconstruction is advocated as a surgical option for patients with severe congestive heart failure. Despite initial enthusiasm for this procedure, reports of long-term results are sparse. Herein, we describe a particularly gratifying case of left ventricular reconstruction in a 43-year-old man, who continues to have excellent left ventricular function 10 years postoperatively. This approach may be a reasonable alternative to cardiac transplantation in patients who lack other treatment options.
Project description:BackgroundWe present a case that illustrates the diagnostic challenge of differentiating thrombus from tumour when confronted with a large left ventricular (LV) cardiac mass.Case summaryA 43-year-old Caucasian woman polysubstance-abuser presented to a regional hospital with an ST-elevation myocardial infarction and underwent aspiration-thrombectomy and successful circumflex artery bare metal stenting. She was noted to have an exuberant LV mass on transthoracic echocardiogram the following day and transferred to our care. Transthoracic echocardiogram, transoesophageal echocardiogram, and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging were performed in an attempt to characterize the mass with conflicting findings for either thrombus or tumour. The mass was surgically excised and final pathology indicated a fibrin-rich thrombus.DiscussionThe association of the mass with an infarcted area of the left ventricle supported the diagnosis of thrombus. However, due to the size and some imaging features a myxoma could not be completely ruled out. Atypical presentations of thrombus can be difficult to differentiate from cardiac tumours.
Project description:Physical examination is becoming a lost art. We describe a case of a patient who was referred to us with an initial diagnosis of ventricular septal defect. Discordance between imaging findings and the physical examination led to a diagnosis of an accessory left ventricle, a rare but benign congenital cardiac condition. (Level of Difficulty: Beginner.).
Project description:Chordoma is a rare neoplasm of bone that develops from the remnants of the primitive notochord. We present a 78-year-old woman with metastatic chordoma to the left ventricle. She had been diagnosed with sacral chordoma 5 years earlier, and chordoma gradually spread to numerous muscles, the ankle joint of the left leg, bilateral lungs, and the brain, despite repeated surgical excisions and carbon heavy-ion radiotherapy. Positron emission tomography/computed tomography showed an abnormal accumulation in the heart, with features similar to the other metastatic lesions. Transthoracic echocardiography could not provide a clear view of the heart, but multidetector computed tomography revealed that a giant abnormal mass was attached to the apical inferior segment of the left ventricle. The patient stated that she did not want to undergo surgical resection for the cardiac mass. The chordoma has been slowly increasing in size, but she has remained asymptomatic without cardiovascular events for more than a year since the diagnosis of cardiac metastasis. <Learning objective: Multidetector computed tomography provided information not only about the structure morphology of the left ventricular mass, but also about the pathological features using the attenuation values of computed tomography, enabling us to make a diagnosis of a metastatic lesion to the left ventricle from sacral chordoma.>.
Project description:Aorto-left ventricular tunnel (ALVT) is a rare congenital anomaly with extracardiac channel connecting ascending aorta to the ventricle. It presents early in life due to congestive cardiac failure. We present a case of ALVT with unusual morphology in an 11-year-old male child with palpitations and dyspnea. We also describe the transesophageal echocardiography evaluation of ALVT.
Project description:BackgroundIsolated left ventricular apical hypoplasia (ILVAH) is a rare, probably congenital, cardiac condition recently reported in the last two decades. Although most cases are asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic, some severe and fatal cases have been reported, leading to more efforts for appropriate diagnosis and treatment. We describe the first, and severe, case of this pathology in Peru and Latin America.Case summaryA 24-year-old male with a history of long-standing alcohol and illicit drug use presented with symptoms of heart failure (HF) and atrial fibrillation (AF). Transthoracic echocardiography showed biventricular dysfunction along with spherical left ventricle, abnormal papillary muscles' origin from the left ventricular apex, and an elongated right ventricle wrapping around the deficient left ventricular apex. Cardiac magnetic resonance confirmed these findings and revealed subepicardial fatty replacement at the left ventricular apex. The diagnosis of ILVAH was made. He was discharged from hospital with carvedilol, enalapril, digoxin, and warfarin. Eighteen months later he remains mildly symptomatic at New York Heart Association functional class II without worsening HF nor thrombo-embolism.DiscussionThis case highlights the usefulness of multimodality non-invasive cardiovascular imaging for accurate diagnosis of ILVAH as well as the importance of close follow-up and treatment of established complications (HF and AF).
Project description:Cardiac leiomyosarcomas are a rare subset of the already infrequent, primary malignant cardiac neoplasia spectrum. The most common site for a primary leiomyosarcoma of the ventricle is on the right with fewer than five globally reported cases in the left ventricle. Most present with non-specific symptoms but attention is usually sought after the appearance of compressive symptoms or arrhythmias. We present a case of a left ventricular leiomyosarcoma in a 50-year old female patient that had a delayed diagnosis and its subsequent surgical resection and oncological management with docetaxel and gemcitabine. This case highlights the need for a high index of suspicion for cardiac masses especially if there are competing chronic diseases with similar symptomatology. Given the rare presentation of left ventricular leiomyosarcomas, case reports may provide valuable information that is otherwise unavailable.
Project description:Highlights•Echocardiography is usually the first imaging modality ordered for evaluation of a cardiac mass.•Although echocardiography cannot define the histopathology of a mass, it can identify the presence, location, and tissue characteristics of the mass, which can thus narrow the differential diagnosis.•Echocardiography is useful in evaluating tumor sequelae such as blood flow obstruction, valvular regurgitation, and myocardial dysfunction.
Project description:BackgroundPerforation of the interventricular septum and left ventricular (LV) free wall by a right ventricular (RV) lead is an extremely rare and potentially life-threatening complication. In this case report, we discussed the diagnosis and management of a very unusual complication of pacemaker (PM) implantation, i.e., LV perforation brought on by an RV pacing lead.Case summaryA 92-year-old man was admitted to Xiangyang No.1 People's Hospital due to a complete atrioventricular block. We performed a dual-chamber PM implantation; however, on the second postoperative day (POD), pacemaker failure occurred. Thoracic computed tomography (CT) scan showed that RV lead had pierced the interventricular septum and LV free wall. A transvenous lead extraction of the penetrating lead was performed uneventfully, and RV lead was refixed at the lower RV septum on the 5th POD.DiscussionIdentification of high-risk patients is mandatory to prevent this serious complication, and transvenous lead extraction with cardiac surgery backup may be an option.