Giant Left Atrium Causing Acute Pulmonary Edema: A Case Report

Case Reports, 2013

Case Reports in Surgery, 2018

Idiopathic enlargement of the right atrium (IERA) is a very rare abnormality. Approximately one-half (48%) of the patients with a congenital enlargement of the right atrium have no symptoms. When they occur, symptoms include shortness of breath (28% of cases), palpitations (17%), arrhythmias (12%), and in rare cases, right heart failure and extreme tiredness. We report one such case of a young man with a disproportionally enlarged right atrium. The basal transthoracic echocardiogram demonstrated a huge right atrium with a thick smoke pattern and mild tricuspid regurgitation in the absence of congenital heart disease. Magnetic resonance imaging confirmed the right atriomegaly, with initial compression of the right ventricle, and excluded congenital heart defects or absence of pericardium. The patient underwent surgical resection of the right atrial wall and the atriotomy was closed, leaving an atrial chamber of normal consistency and size. The resected atrium had normal and homogeneo...

Case Reports in Cardiology, 2011

Dilation and hypertrophy of the atria occur in patients with valvular heart disease especially in mitral regurgitation, mitral stenosis or tricuspid abnormalities. In sub-saharan Africa, rheumatic fever is still the leading cause of valvular heart disease. We report a case of an unusual giant right atrium in context of rheumatic stenosis and severe tricuspid regurgitation in a 58-year-old woman.

Journal of the American Society of Echocardiography, 1999

Journal of Clinical Case reports and Images, 2019

Rheumatic heart disease is becoming far less common in the developed world, and therefore expsoure to its complications are been seen less by clinicians. With the increasing ease of world travel, patients with less commonly seen medical conditions are increasingly presenting to Hospitals requiring management of their complications. We present a case of an elderly lady who was a tourist in Australia, who presented with complications of her rheumatic heart disease, and her subsequent radiological and echocardiographic investigations were a significant surpirse for her treating clinicians.

Medical archives (Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina), 2017

Excess dilatation of the left atrium >65 mm is known in the literature as gigantic atrium. This dilation is most commonly encountered in the mitral insufficiency of rheumatic etiology, but also in severe prolapses of the mitral valve, permanent atrial fibrillation, and at the left right shunt with cardiac insufficiency. In this paper is presented a case study of echocardiographically verified giant thrombus in left atrium in a 50 years old female patient aged 50 hospitalized because of tiredness, choking, heartburn and urinary tract symptoms. The patient had rheumatic fever at age of 18 years. At age of 35, she was diagnosed with mitral stenosis. In permanent atrial fibrillation with anamnestic data on the previous cerebrovascular stroke (CVI) and the repeated transitional ischemic seizures. Echocardiographic examination confirmed severe mitral stenosis with moderate aortic insufficiency and gigantic left atrium (LA) with gigantic thrombus. Invasive diagnostics were indicated and...

European Journal of Cardio-Thoracic Surgery, 2008

Giant left atrium (GLA) is a condition defined when the left atrial diameter exceeds 65 mm. GLA is commonly associated with mitral valve regurgitation due to excess intracavitary pressure resulting in strain and dilation of the left atrial chamber. The mechanism of lone GLA remains unknown but is possibly related to inherent weakening of the atrial wall tissue. The enlarged left atrium leads to expansion of left atrial volume, which in turn can place pressure on the main bronchus, lung, and left ventricle with corresponding cardiopulmonary embarrassment. Because GLA can increase the risk of sudden death, its existence merits careful evaluation and surgical intervention when needed. Careful review of the literature reveals that the presence of GLA in the context of severe mitral valve regurgitation with or without atrial fibrillation is the most common indication for surgical intervention. Indications for intervening on lone GLA are rare except when compressive symptoms manifest. Partial resection of inferior and or superior left atrial wall is the most common surgical technique. With the evolution of atrial fibrillation surgery, atrial size matters and is determinant of long term performance following successful ablation. Surgical management of GLA achieves good clinical outcome with respect to cardiopulmonary performance including restoration of sinus rhythm among patients suffering from atrial fibrillation. Surgeons should be aware of current modalities for atrial volume reduction when indicated to retain the function and structure of the left atrium.

SAS Journal of Surgery

Rheumatic mitral valve disease, a preventable and eradicable condition, remains the primary indication of mitral valve surgery in developing countries. Delayed surgery is the main cause of giant left atrium (LA). This extreme dilatation of LA causes various complications compromising hemodynamic stability. We describe herein a patient with severe mitral stenosis and giant LA who had successful surgical correction by mitral valve replacement with reduction of the size of a LA.

BMC Cardiovascular Disorders

Background Malformation of the right atrium is a rare cardiac abnormality and is usually reported as isolated malformation in the literature. Case presentation Prenatal giant atrial dilatation in an asymptomatic infant was treated surgically at 18 months of age, due to potential risk of thrombosis and arrhythmias. Post-surgical echocardiographic images illustrate residual atrial elevated pressure. Conclusions Sometimes, as seems in our case, right atrial dilatation hides an associated restrictive right ventricle.

The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, 1998

The persistence of a left superior vena cava (SVC) draining into the coronary sinus has been described as the most common thoracic venous anomaly and is present in about 3% to 10% of patients with congenital heart disease. Moreover, it has been reported as an anatomic finding without hemodynamic consequences unless associated with an unroofed coronary sinus. In 1987, however, Ascuitto and colleagues 1 reported a case in which a left SVC produced a subdivided left atrium.