Oral contraceptive drugs, hyperhomocysteinaemia and cerebral ischaemic events in a 31-year-old woman--a case report

We present a case of a 31-year-old female who was admitted to the hospital due to recurrent syncope. Transoesophageal echocardiography revealed the presence of an interventricular septum defect with insignificant left-to-right shunt and excluded intracardiac thrombi. Magnetic resonance of brain showed several ischaemic areas of vascular origin. Tests for arrhythmias or vaso-vagal reflex as the causes of syncope were negative. Further examinations revealed hyperhomocysteinaemia which, together with prolonged oral contraceptive treatment, might have caused cerebral arterial thrombosis.     

An unusual case of multiple right atrial thrombi in a patient with a dual-chamber pacemaker--a case report.

The authors present an unusual case of multiple large atrial thrombi attached to permanent pacemaker leads identified by transesophageal echocardiography. Pathogenesis, clinical implications, and therapeutic options of pacemaker thrombi are discussed.     

Management of mobile right heart thrombi: a prospective series

BACKGROUND: Mobile right heart thrombi (MRHT) are uncommon but their true prevalence is unknown. The aim of our study was to assess the prevalence of MRHT by a systemic use of transthoracic echocardiography in a prospective series of consecutive patients admitted for acute severe pulmonary embolism (PE) and to adopt intravenous thrombolysis with recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA) as the first line intention to treat patients with proven MRHT. METHODS AND RESULTS: We performed a systematic transthoracic echocardiogram from November 1997 to June 1999 in 335 consecutive patients admitted for suspected acute massive PE in whom the diagnosis was subsequently confirmed by perfusion lung scan or angiography. MRHT was identified in 12 of the 335 patients (4%). Nine patients presented a coil form and three patients a ball form. The thrombolytic employed in all cases was rt-PA according to the following protocol: 10 mg in a bolus and 40 mg over 2 h, followed by 50 mg over 5 h, up in a total dose of 100 mg, associated with a bolus of 5000 units of heparin. Control echocardiograms were performed 12 h after the initiation of treatment and at 12-month follow-up. Three patients died before the onset of thrombolytic infusion. The nine remaining patients were submitted to thrombolytic therapy using rt-PA. In seven of the nine remaining patients, MRHT was no longer observed after 12 h and the echocardiographic signs of RV overload had disappeared. The two last patients required adjunctive surgery because of evidence of persistent thrombus in a pulmonary artery. After 24 h, both scintigraphy and angiography demonstrated improved pulmonary perfusion. At 1-year follow-up, all patients were alive and the pulmonary artery pressure estimated by Doppler echocardiography was <30 mm Hg. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of right heart thrombus is low in patients admitted for acute PE. Thrombolytic therapy with rt-PA appears to be rapidly effective in most patients with MRHT. The thrombus usually resolves and pulmonary perfusion is rapidly improved. Systematic echocardiogram appears to be useful for rapidly detecting MRHT in patients with suspected massive PE.     

Acute aortic dissection in a 34 year old pregnant woman--a case report

A case of a 34 year old pregnant woman at 38 weeks gestation, who was admitted to the hospital with acute chest pain, is presented. Electrocardiogram showed ST segment changes suggestive of acute myocardial infarction. Echocardiography, however, revealed acute aortic dissection. The patient was transferred to another hospital where caesarean section followed by cardiac surgery were successfully performed. A subsequent one-year follow-up period was uneventful, both for mother and child. Diagnosis and treatment of acute aortic dissection during pregnancy are discussed.     

Ablation of atypical, fast atrio-ventricular nodal tachycardia in a pregnant woman--a case report

We describe a case of a 24-year-old pregnant woman (35 hbd) who was admitted because of fast (240 bpm) supraventricular tachycardia which required electrical external cardioversion (transesophageal atrial pacing and drugs were ineffective). She underwent RF ablation during which a single RF application effectively cured atypical atrio-ventricular nodal tachycardia. The duration of fluoroscopy was 53 seconds. The child was delivered on time and with no complications.     

Successful resection of renal cell carcinoma with tumor thrombi extending into the right atrium: a case report.

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is often associated with an extension of tumor thrombi into the inferior vena cava (IVC) and occasionally up to the right atrium. RCC with IVC involvement has a relatively favorable prognosis when it is completely resected. We present a successfully resected case of RCC with tumor thrombi extending into the right atrium. We performed radical right nephrectomy with lymph node dissection and removed the tumor thrombi en bloc under total hepatic vascular exclusion with the veno-venous bypass between the IVC and the right atrium using an active centrifugal force pump. The patient has been in good condition for 3 years since surgery with no evidence of recurrence.     

Intrauterine contraceptive device appendicitis： A case report

Uterine perforation is one of the serious complications associated with use of the intrauterine contraceptive device (IUD). Uterine perforation by IUD can involve several neighboring organs. A case of acute appendicitis was caused by a Multiload Cu 375 IUD inserted previously. This is a rare complication and only fourteen previous cases were recorded in the literature.     

Apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy as a cause of cardiac insufficiency in an 84-year-old woman--a case report

Apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (ApHCM) is a unique form of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy first described in Japan in 1976. The typical features of ApHCM consist of 'giant' negative T waves in the ECG and a 'spade-like' configuration of the left ventricular cavity detected by imaging techniques. We describe a case of an 84-year-old female in whom heart failure was the first symptom of the disease.     

Herpes simplex virus infection, massive pulmonary thromboembolism, and right atrial thrombi in a single patient: case report

We report a 32-year-old man with herpes simplex virus encephalitis who developed massive pulmonary thromboembolism with mobile right atrial thrombi during treatment for this condition. It was not safe to use thrombolytic therapy because of the high risk of cerebral bleeding associated with encephalitis. The patient was initially treated at another center, but his condition deteriorated during nadroparin therapy and he was referred to our hospital. Nadroparin was discontinued, and a continuous infusion of unfractionated heparin was administered through a central venous catheter. The patient's general status improved over the next 24 hours, and all thrombi in the right atrium disappeared. There was immediate lysis of the thrombi after the continuous infusion of unfractionated heparin was initiated. We suggest that central-line infusion of this agent is preferable to peripheral infusion in such cases. Further research on the potential thrombolytic effect of heparin is needed.     

Thrombi of the right heart. Value of thrombolytic therapy in mobile thrombi]

Seven patients with mobile right heart thrombi, 4 floating and 3 pediculated, were recensed between 1985 and 1990. Two patients were admitted for congestive cardiac failure (Group I) and 5 patients for pulmonary embolism (Group II). Both patients in Group I were treated with heparin without complications. In one case, the size of the thrombus decreased in 10 days whereas, in the second case, it disappeared within 8 days. In Group II, the first patient underwent successful thrombectomy. The other four patients were given thrombolytic therapy (UK = 2, rt-PA = 2) associated with appropriate doses of heparin. In the two patients given UK (3M units the first day followed by 1.2 M units per day for 4 days) the thrombus disappeared in the first 48 hours of treatment. One patient had a recurrent pulmonary embolism after 2 hours' treatment; both patients had a fall in haemoglobin of 3 cg/ml at the second day. The second patient died at the 5th day. In the two patients treated by rt-PA (100 mg/7 hours) the thrombus disappeared within 4 hours of starting therapy. One patient had a probable recurrent pulmonary embolism. Both patients had a fall in haemoglobin of 3 cg/ml at the 2nd day of treatment. Right heart thrombi are rare (168 cases in the literature of which 111 were mobile). The prognosis seems to be related to echocardiographic appearances: mortality of mural thrombi is about 4% compared with 50% in mobile thrombi. Very mobile "worm-like" masses are therapeutic emergencies because of the risk of embolism (about 68%).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Comparison of gated cardiac magnetic resonance imaging and two-dimensional echocardiography for the evaluation of right ventricular thrombi: a case report with autopsy correlation

In a patient who died of complications of severe pulmonary hypertension, right ventricular failure, and sepsis, antemortem two-dimensional (2-D) echocardiography and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies demonstrated a right ventricular mass which at autopsy proved to be thrombus. The diagnostic features of this mass as imaged by these two methods are compared. This case was complicated in that the patient had a history of right atrial myxoma that had been successfully removed three years previously, and a history of several prior pulmonary emboli. Gated MRI depicted the size, shape, and surface characteristics of the mass more clearly than 2-D echocardiography because MRI provided better contrast and spatial resolution. Both techniques were useful in localizing the mass and showing if it was fixed or mobile. Depiction of tumor attachment was unclear with echocardiography but very clear with MRI. MRI also showed a left pulmonary artery thrombus that was not visualized by 2-D echocardiography. Both techniques provided chamber dimension measurements showing enlargement of the right atrium and ventricle. This case demonstrates that gated MRI provides high-quality images of cardiac anatomy and masses. Gated cardiac MRI should be considered at least complementary and potentially superior to two-dimensional echocardiography in the evaluation of intracardiac masses in certain patients.     

New-onset congestive heart failure secondary to a "huge" right atrial mass--a case report

Transesophageal echocardiography is a useful adjunct to other diagnostic modalities in uncovering the etiology of congestive heart failure. The authors describe the case of a 75-year-old woman with a 4-week history of progressive congestive heart failure, in whom transesophageal echocardiography played a critical role in the diagnosis of a right atrial mass, accounting for this patient's constellation of symptoms.     

Solitary hypoplasia of the right ventricle: a case report

Hypoplasia of the right ventricle occurring as an isolated abnormality is an uncommon cause of cyanotic congenital heart disease. Its presentation in the newborn may mimic the ductus dependent and less stable right ventricular hypoplasias such as tricuspid atresia and pulmonary atresia. However, the natural history of this abnormality contrasts with those ductus dependent lesions by the rather benign course it presents. A patient with only marked reduction in right ventricular size and commensurate reduction in size of the tricuspid and pulmonary valves is described. Although cyanotic this child has shown none of the critical problems frequently encountered with the more severe forms of the right ventricular hypoplasias.     

静脉内平滑肌瘤累及右心、肺动脉1例

<正>1病例资料患者女,44岁。因"发作性晕厥3个月余"于2012年4月23日入院。患者近期5次劳作或休息时突发晕厥,瘫倒在地,伴有意识障碍,数秒后意识自行恢复,晕厥前过程可回忆,于外院行冠状动脉CT见:下腔静脉、右心室、右心房、右心房流出道、右肺动脉多发占位,黏液瘤可     

右心起搏器电极致感染性心内膜炎及肺栓塞一例

<正>1病例资料患者,男,73岁。因"起搏器植入并更换16年,起搏器囊袋感染5年"于2011年6月20日入院。1995年因"二度Ⅱ型房室传导阻滞"植入永久起搏器,术后无寒战、发热,无咳嗽、咳痰,无胸痛、呼吸困难及咯血。2003年患者因起搏器电池耗竭,行起搏器更换术。2006年患者起搏器植入切口处出现肿胀,伴黄色脓性分泌物、周围皮肤发红、皮温升高,予抗生素治疗后好转。起搏器电池耗竭,再次行起搏器     

Mobile right heart thrombus with minimal pulmonary embolism. A case report

The generalisation of the use of transthoracic echocardiography in the investigation of pulmonary embolism leads to the diagnosis of mobile right heart thrombus in about 5% of cases. A review of the literature shows that this association is mainly observed in clinically severe pulmonary embolism. The presence of a mobile right heart thrombus is associated with a poor prognosis and emergency treatment is based on thrombolytic therapy or surgical embolectomy. In minimal or infraclinical pulmonary embolism, the finding of a mobile right heart thrombus is rare and there is no consensus about its treatment. The authors report the case of a 61 year old man admitted to hospital for bilateral deep vein thrombosis with no symptoms of pulmonary embolism in whom investigations revealed a mobile right heart thrombus with minimal pulmonary embolism. The outcome was favourable with progressive resolution of the right heart thrombus with oral anticoagulation after three weeks of heparin therapy.