Mounting evidence has demonstrated that the autonomic system plays a role in the morbidity and mortality of certain cardiovascular disease states. Ventricular arrhythmias have been associated with the level of sympathetic activation. We attempted to determine if the presence of fibrosis, a marker for previous ischemic events, correlates with an increase in the number of left stellate ganglion n...

A four year old girl with pulmonary atresia had a straddling tricuspid valve without an interventricular communication. The overriding tricuspid valve had two orifices, which connected with the right and the left ventricles. Valve tissue separated both orifices and was firmly connected to the crest of the ventricular septum, thus sealing off the expected interventricular communication. Surgical...

A 42 year old woman was admitted to our hospital for investigation of eosinophilia. There were no findings from the physical examination of the lungs and heart. The echocardiography showed a segmental hypokinesia of the interventricular septum and the apex causing left ventricular dysfunction with an ejection fraction 45% and mild pericardial effusion. Cardiac magnetic resonance was performed, ...

Metastatic tumors to the heart unlike primary cardiac tumors are not rare. Despite its frequency, cardiac metastasis is commonly detected only during autopsy as the symptoms of disseminated metastasis prevail over symptoms caused by cardiac metastasis and hence is overlooked most of the time. Tumors more commonly found metastasizing to the heart are malignancies of lung, breast, esophagus, lymp...