1/35. Syphilitic aortic regurgitation. An appraisal of surgical treatment.During the 10 years from 1964 to 1973, fifteen patients with severe syphilitic aortic regurgitation were treated surgically at the National Heart Hospital. In thirteen the valve was replaced and in two it was repaired. In addition four had replacement of an aneurysmal ascending aorta with a Dacron graft and seven some form of plastic repair to the coronary ostia. Three patients died within 1 month of surgery and a further six during the follow-up period which varied from 1 to 55 months (mean 25-5). The six survivors have been followed-up for an average of 33 months. Factors contributing to this high mortality were analysed and it was found that the mean duration of effort dyspnoea was 22 months in the survivors compared with 48 months in those who had died. Similarly the average duration of nocturnal dyspnoea was 4 months in the survivors compared with a mean of 8 months in those who had died. Only six out of the fifteen patients had angina; this was present in two of the survivors and in four of the fatalities. The pulse pressure, heart size, and haemodynamic findings were similar in the two groups. The prognostic value of an elevated erythocyte sedimentation rate was also examined. It was concluded that preoperative investigations should include aortography, coronary arteriography, an assessment of left ventricular function, and whenever possible myocardial biopsy. These data were interpreted as suggesting that patients should be referred for surgery at an earlier stage in the disease--certainly before the onset of cardiac failure and--and that if this more aggresive attitude was adopted, as it has been in non-syphilitic cases of aortic valve disease, the present high mortality in this group would be reduced.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = aneurysm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/35. Right lateral transthoracic approach mimicking standard transesophageal echocardiographic views in a patient with giant left atrium.We describe the case of a patient with long-standing severe mitral periprosthetic regurgitation and a giant left atrium. The patient was referred for surgery. On the third postoperative day, after resuture of the dehiscence of the valve sewing ring, the patient complained of dyspnea. Transthoracic ultrasound examination was performed to eliminate pleural effusion. The severe right lateral displacement of an aneurysmatic left atrial cavity contacting with the thoracic wall allowed us to obtain excellent images of the posterior cardiac anatomy by a right lateral thoracic view. The new transthoracic approach made it possible to safely assess the atrial side of the mitral prosthesis, eliminating mitral regurgitation after surgery without transesophageal echocardiographic examination.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = aneurysm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/35. Spiral CT in an acute spontaneous aorto-caval fistula.A patient with a known infrarenal atherosclerotic aneurysm measuring 8 cm presented with sudden dyspnoe, lower back pain and enormous venous congestion of the lower extremities. Spiral CT rendered precise diagnosis and localisation of a large and acute spontaneous aorto-caval fistula and made early surgical intervention possible. Abdominal aorto-caval fistulas are rare complications and can occur after surgery, trauma or spontaneously in an atherosclerotic or inflammatory aneurysm. Spiral CT enables a rapid and precise diagnosis facilitating the planning of the therapeutic approach to this complication.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 2keywords = aneurysm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/35. Platypnea-orthodeoxia syndrome related to an aortic aneurysm combined with an aneurysm of the atrial septum.We report the case of a 71-year-old man bearing a severe right-to-left shunt through a patent foramen ovale in the absence of elevated right-sided heart or pulmonary artery pressures. He presented with platypnea-orthodeoxia syndrome, but he had no pulmonary or extracardiac diseases that are known to be associated with this syndrome. Chest radiography showed a bulky aneurysm of the thoracic aorta. A peripheral contrast transesophageal echocardiography demonstrated a large right-to-left shunt through a patent foramen ovale. In addition, the atrial septum was severely deformed by an aneurysm including this patent foramen ovale. We hypothesized that the opening of the foramen ovale was the result of a mechanical deformation of the atrial septum by two contributing factors: the aneurysm of the thoracic aorta and the aneurysm of the septum itself.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 12keywords = aneurysm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/35. dyspnea lusoria: compression of the pulmonary artery by a Kommerell's diverticulum.We report a rare case of Kommerell's diverticulum presenting as dyspnea on exertion. After careful physical examination, selective imaging tests demonstrated a significant flow abnormality in the left pulmonary artery caused by an aneurysm of the descending aorta in the area of the ligamentum arteriosum.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = aneurysm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/35. Isolated idiopathic pulmonary artery aneurysm.Aneurysm formation of the main pulmonary artery is rare. Its natural history is not well understood and there are no clear guidelines on optimal treatment. A 20-year-old woman with a huge saccular aneurysm of the main pulmonary artery, underwent repair with a pericardial patch and concomitant reconstruction of the pulmonary valve. The patient was doing well on follow-up at 6 months; echocardiography revealed a good repair with mild to moderate pulmonary regurgitation.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 5keywords = aneurysm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/35. Platypnea - orthodeoxia syndrome with atrial septal defect.A 75-year old man was referred to hospital for symptomatic hypoxemia. He did not complain of dyspnea while supine, but while sitting or standing, he experienced dyspnea with severe hypoxemia. He did not have any pulmonary diseases that could cause dyspnea. Transesophageal echocardiography revealed an atrial septal aneurysm with a small atrial septal defect (ASD) and a mild left-to-right shunt through the ASD when the patient was supine. However, when he became upright, a severe right-to-left shunt occurred and the arterial oxygen saturation decreased from 96% to 80% with dyspnea. cardiac catheterization revealed normal pulmonary artery pressure. He was therefore diagnosed as having platypnea - orthodeoxia syndrome. magnetic resonance imaging of the chest showed a deformity of the atrium associated with elongation of the ascending aorta. The ASD was closed surgically and the dyspnea and hypoxemia that occurred while he was upright completely resolved.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = aneurysm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/35. Left ventricular pseudoaneurysm after myocardial infarction.In this report, a case of a left ventricular (LV) pseudoaneurysm due to a previous myocardial infarction, which was repaired successfully, is described. A 62-year-old man, with a history of acute anterior wall myocardial infarction 6 months previously, was admitted with the complaints of acute dyspnea and palpitation. echocardiography revealed an LV aneurysm, and ventriculography showed ventricular dysfunction and an LV pseudoaneurysm. coronary angiography showed total occlusion of the proximal segment of the left anterior descending artery with a very thin lumen and insufficient retrograde filling. Under cardiopulmonary bypass and beating heart, the pseudoaneurysm was resected and the defect on the ventricular free wall was closed by the remodeling ventriculoplasty method of Dor. Histopathologic examination of the resected material confirmed the diagnosis of pseudoaneurysm. The postoperative course of our patient was uneventful. He was discharged on the ninth postoperative day.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 10.311862521701keywords = aneurysm, pseudoaneurysm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/35. Rare case of heart failure caused by compression of the left atrium by a thoracic aortic aneurysm.A 61 year old patient was found to have an aneurysm extending from the aortic root to the suprarenal region. He underwent first stage surgery with aortic root and arch replacement, prosthetic aortic valve replacement, and coronary artery bypass grafting. Four weeks later, he presented with breathlessness and signs of heart failure and pleural effusion. Computed tomography showed that the left atrium was compressed between the aortic aneurysm posteriorly and the left ventricle and sternum anteriorly. Obstruction of the superior vena cava, bronchus, oesophagus, and rarely right atrium by an aortic aneurysm has been described before but presentation with left atrial compression has not been reported.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 7keywords = aneurysm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
10/35. Left main coronary artery and right pulmonary vein compression by a large pulmonary artery aneurysm.pulmonary artery aneurysms are uncommon and may be associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The unique combination of left main coronary artery and upper right pulmonary vein compression by a large pulmonary artery aneurysm is reported. Furthermore, the aetiology, clinical manifestations, complications, diagnostic approach, and possible therapeutic interventions are briefly discussed.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 6keywords = aneurysm (Clic here for more details about this article) |
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