CLINICAL CASES   

Chirurgia 2009 October;22(5):239-41

Copyright © 2009 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Cardiac papillary fibroelastoma complicated with multiple strokes: case report

Aoyagi S., Tobinaga S., Fukunaga S., Ueda T.

Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Kurume, Japan

This report describes the case a patient who suffered from multiple strokes caused by a papillary fibroelastoma (PFE) attached to the left ventricular septum. A 56-year-old female was admitted with left hemiparesis which represented her third cerebrovascular accident. Echocardiography showed a small, highly mobile, solitary tumor with an irregular surface attached by a short stalk to the ventricular septum in the left ventricular outflow tract. At surgery, a small papillary tumor, resembling a sea anemone, on the ventricular septum was removed with part f the underlying myocardium through the aortic valve. The hisotological examination demonstrated that the lesion had a papillary configuration with an avascular connective tissue core lined by a single layer of endothelial cells, which was compatible with a diagnosis of cardiac PFE. A surgical excision of PFEs should be carried out for all patients regardless of the symptoms, size, or site of origin.