An Uncommon Cause of Coronary Artery Ostial Obstruction: Papillary Fibroelastoma

Cardiac papillary fibroelastoma is a benign tumor that mainly affects cardiac valves. The tumor has the potential to cause angina and myocardial infarction due to embolization of tumor fragments. We describe a rare case of right coronary artery ostial obstruction by a 12 × 19 mm sized papillary fibroelastoma located in the sinus of Valsalva. The report underlies the importance of echocardiography in diagnosis and intraoperative treatment of this type of cardiac mass. (Echocardiography 2010;27:337‐340)     

Lambl's Excrescences Involving the Pulmonary Valve Detected by Transesophageal Echocardiography

We report the first case of echocardiographically detected Lambl's excrescences on the pulmonary valve in a 72-year-old man who was referred for transesophageal echocardiography as a part of an evaluation for ischemic stroke. A total of four excrescences were noted on the arterial aspect of the pulmonary valve; two of them were on the anterior cusp, one was on the left cusp, and one was on the right cusp. The excrescence on the left cusp was the largest, measuring 5 mm in length. These valvular strands (Lambl's excrescences) represented an incidental finding and were not associated with any disease process.     

Papillary fibroelastoma of the mitral valve with systemic embolization

Primary tumors of the heart are rare disorders. In autopsy studies, their incidence was reported to be 0.01-0.5%. We present the case of a papillary fibroelastoma of the mitral valve with systemic embolization in a young man.     

Papillary fibroelastoma of the pulmonary valve: assessment by live/real time three-dimensional transthoracic echocardiography

The differential diagnosis of a cardiac valve mass includes fibroelastoma, myxoma, lipoma, Lambl's excrescences, thrombus, and vegetation. Fibroelastomas are extremely rare primary cardiac tumors. Their incidence is 0.00017-0.033% in autopsy series and 0.019% in clinical series identified on echocardiography. Although rare, fibroelastomas are the most common tumors affecting the cardiac valves with aortic, mitral, tricuspid, and pulmonary valves being involved in this order. In the current report we describe a case of pulmonary valve mass in which a confident prospective diagnosis of fibroelastoma could be made utilizing the technique of three-dimensional transthoracic echocardiography.     

Papillary Fibroelastoma Incidentally Found on Left Atrial Wall During Minimally Invasive Aortic Valve Replacement

A 60-year-old man was about to undergo minimally invasive aortic valve replacement when transesophageal echocardiography revealed an intracardiac mass on the left atrial free wall. Multimodal images from 5 months earlier had shown no mass. We converted the procedure to open surgery. The excised mass resembled a cardiac myxoma but was determined to be a papillary fibroelastoma. This case illustrates that papillary fibroelastomas can form and grow rapidly, warranting alertness for their unexpected discovery before and during cardiac surgical procedures.     

Rapid Development of a Papillary Fibroelastoma with Associated Thrombus: The Role of Transthoracic and Transesophageal Echocardiography

Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) and transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) are frequently utilized in patient's with suspected cerebral vascular ischemia. We describe a patient with suspected cerebral vascular ischemic event whom was found to have a mobile valvular mass by TTE and TEE. The lesion was unusual due to its rapid development over a period 6 months, which was documented on serial echocardiography. The mass was excised surgically and pathology showed a papillary fibroelastoma with extensive thrombus. The differential diagnosis of a cardiac valvular mass and the treatment of cardiac fibroelastomas are reviewed. In this case, both TTE and TEE were valuable in diagnosis and facilitating surgical management of a cardiac fibroelastoma.     

A Systematic Approach to Pulmonary Valve Replacement in the Current Era

Background: Pulmonary valve replacement (PVR) can be accomplished via surgical, transcatheter, or hybrid approaches. There are inherent advantages to transcatheter PVR and hybrid PVR without cardiopulmonary bypass. We review the methods and results of a standardized institutional approach to PVR. Methods: Retrospective review of all PVR cases between February 2017 and February 2020. Hybrid PVR entailed off-pump RVOT plication with percutaneous transcatheter PVR. Results: Primary transcatheter PVR was attempted in 37, hybrid PVR was performed in 11, and on-pump surgical PVR was performed in 9. Median age at PVR was 27 years (6–65). Primary transcatheter PVR was successful in 35/37 (2 converted to surgical). Standard surgical PVR was utilized for positive coronary compression testing (n = 4), stent/valve system migration (n = 2), or patient preference (n = 3). In the hybrid group mean RVOT diameter was 34 mm (32–38). Median length of stay was 1 day for transcatheter PVR, 5 for surgical, and 3 for hybrid (p = 0.02). Median follow-up was 1.5 years. Re-interventions were one balloon valve dilation in a transcatheter PVR, and one valve dilation with subsequent transcatheter valve-in-valve PVR in the surgical cohort. One hybrid patient expired 11 months post procedure. Conclusions: A systematic approach to PVR utilizing all approaches in pre-defined order of preference leads to consistent outcomes in a wide variety of anatomic configurations. Transcatheter PVR may be accomplished in the majority of patients. When necessary, hybrid off-pump RVOT plication with transcatheter PVR avoids the need for cardiopulmonary bypass.     

法洛氏四联症根治术后肺动脉瓣置换术研究进展

法洛氏四联症根治术后肺动脉瓣置换术手术时间,目前尚存在争议。指征包括显著的肺动脉瓣反流合并重度右心室扩大（右心室舒张末容积指数〉150ml／m^2或〉2倍左心室舒张末容积指数）、持续性心房扑动／心房颤动或持续性室性心动过速及QRS间期〉180ms等。术后右心室功能迅速改善,表现为右心室容量、质量的减少,QRS间期缩短等。反流的肺动脉瓣常用同种移植物、生物瓣、机械瓣代替。经导管人工肺动脉瓣置换手术及镶嵌治疗可作为外科手术的补充治疗。     

Papillary fibroelastoma of the pulmonary valve

A papillary fibroelastoma is rare, but it is the most common primary tumor of the cardiac valves. Most papillary fibroelastomas affect the left-sided heart valves, such as the aortic and mitral valves; however, they also rarely affect the pulmonary valve. Generally, surgical removal is strongly recommended to prevent its potential thromboembolic risks, especially in cases of left-sided cardiac involvement. However, there are few reports on the treatment of asymptomatic, small, right-sided cardiac fibroelastomas. We present a rare case of an asymptomatic papillary fibroelastoma occurring on the pulmonary valve, which was detected by transthoracic echocardiography, transesophageal echocardiography, and a 64-slice cardiac computed tomography scan, and which was surgically removed.     

Premature Pulmonary Valve Opening in Cardiac Amyloidosis

Premature pulmonary valve opening has been described in various conditions associated with increased right ventricular end-diastolic pressure. Although cardiac amyloidosis belongs to this category of diseases, abnormalities of pulmonary valve motion have not been reported in this setting. This article describes premature pulmonary valve opening in a patient with cardiac amyloidosis.     

Absent Pulmonary Valve: Echocardiographic Features

Congenital absence of the pulmonary valve, a rare anomaly, is characterized by absent or rudimentary pulmonary valve, often with annular stenosis, and aneurysmal dilatation of the pulmonary arteries. This defect is most commonly an accompaniment of tetralogy of Fallot but occasionally occurs alone. Four patients with this abnormality were examined by two-dimensional echocardiography at the Mayo Clinic. Doppler echocardiography provided hemodynamic assessment of the magnitude of outflow obstruction and valve regurgitation. The two-dimensional echocardio-graphic and Doppler features of absent or rudimentary pulmonary valve provided diagnostic information sufficient to proceed directly to surgical correction.     

Quadricuspid Pulmonary Valve Identified by Transthoracic Echocardiography

The quadricuspid pulmonary valve is a rare congenital anomaly. It tends to be clinically quiescent. Its diagnosis by two-dimensional echocardiography could be very difficult because of the anatomical features. We report on the echocardiographic findings of a 66-year-old female patient with mitral and aortic regurgitation of rheumatic origin and severe pulmonary hypertension. There was an aneurismatic dilation of the pulmonary artery trunk allowing visualization of the short-axis view of the pulmonary valve. It showed four cusps of similar size and an important deficit of central coaptation. Very few cases of the quadricuspid pulmonary valve are documented in live patients .     

Brucella Prosthetic Valve Endocarditis: A Systematic Review

ObjectiveBrucella prosthetic valve endocarditis is a rare but a life-threatening complication of brucellosis. It remains a diagnostic challenge. Optimal treatment of Brucella prosthetic valve endocarditis is debated. Available data is limited to case reports or small case series. The purpose of this study was to systematically review all published cases of Brucella prosthetic valve endocarditis in the literature.MethodA systematic review of PubMed database, Google, Google Scholar, and Scopus (From January 1974 to the present) for studies providing epidemiological, clinical and microbiological data as well as data on treatment and outcomes of Brucella prosthetic valve endocarditis was performed.ResultsA total of 51 reported cases were reviewed. Brucella melitensis (45%) and Brucella abortus (11.7%) were the most frequently isolated species. Most common type of prosthesis valve was mechanical prothesis (84.3%) and ten patients had double valve prosthesis (19.6%). Fever and dyspnea were present in 100% and 37.2% of the cases, respectively. The diagnosis was set with echocardiographic finding in 30 cases (93.7%), which revealed vegetation in 27 cases (84.3%). Most used antibiotics were rifampicin, doxycycline and aminoglycoside or cotrimoxazole. No deaths were noted in patients treated by combined medical and surgical treatment, but mortality was noted in 27.7% of the cases treated by antibiotics alone (p = 0.006).ConclusionThis systematic review highlights diagnostic challenges and demonstrates that surgery improved outcome by reducing mortality in patients treated with the combined surgical and medical treatment option. Brucellosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of prosthetic valve endocarditis in patients residing in or traveling to areas of endemicity.     

Papillary fibroelastoma, a rare but potentially treatable cause of embolic stroke: report of three cases

Papillary fibroelastomas are rare benign tumours that are seldom diagnosed during life. We report three cases of this tumour; two patients had recurrent embolic events, and one was diagnosed incidentally. Although rare, these tumours are a potentially treatable cause of cardiac emboli. Prompt identification allows excision, which generally is curative.     

Trileaflet Mitral Valve with Three Papillary Muscles Associated with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy: A Novel Case

Congenital mitral valve (MV) malformations are uncommon, except for MV prolapse. Despite their infrequency, most of them are well‐known and defined entities, such as congenital MV stenosis with two papillary muscles, parachute MV, supravalvular mitral ring, hypoplastic MV, isolated cleft in the anterior and/or posterior leaflets, and double‐orifice MV. A trileaflet MV with three separate papillary muscles with concordant atrioventricular and ventricle–arterial connections is exceptionally rare. To the best of the authors' knowledge, it has been reported only once in association with subaortic valvular stenosis. We hereby describe a novel case associated with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.