Massive left atrial wall calcification, or porcelain atrium, is very rare. We describe a case of an unusual pattern of cardiac calcification demonstrated on routine preoperative chest X-ray for cataract surgery in a 71-year-old Nigerian woman. Past medical history was significant for mitral stenosis and atrial fibrillation. Radiographic imaging revealed curvilinear high density areas of calcifi...

acute left atrial thrombosis at the site of the resection of the primary cribriform septum is an exceedingly rare and important complication after atrial septal defect (asd) closure with a pericardial or synthetic patch. this case report presents a mobile thrombus noted on the left atrium at the raw surface site of a resected cribriform primary septum that was not caught in the suture line with...

T HE cardiac atria of the normal adult are nearly equal in size; the right averages 163 ml. in capacity, the left 140 ml.' The left atrium is more prone to enlarge, usually in association with mitral valve disease; it rarely reaches extreme volumes of 3,000 ml.2 Extreme left atriomegaly was first reported as "aneurysmal dilatation of the left auricle" in 1849 by Hewett,3 but the clinical aspect...

Compression of the left atrium by extra-cardiac structures is a rare cause of dyspnoea or reduced exercise tolerance and can easily be visualized by transthoracic echocardiography (TTE). An impression of the left atrium visualized by TTE could be the first indication of the presence of a pathological structure dorsal to the left atrium; such a structure can, in time, compress the left atrium. T...

Catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation is difficult when the left atrium is compressed by the vertebra. The heart may shift forward, and compression of the left atrium may be relieved in the left lateral decubitus position. Therefore, catheter ablation could be performed in the left lateral decubitus position even in such cases.

Coronary sinus (CS) is a landmark for cardiac intervention. Before catheter ablation of paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia, coronary sinus is used to obtain recordings from the left atrium and ventricle. Despite asymptomatic, anomalies of coronary sinus may become an obstacle for electrophysiological catheterization. Here, we described a case of successful ablation of paroxysmal supraventr...

A stab wound penetrating the left atrium (excluding the left auricle) would have to penetrate through other chambers of the heart or through the great arteries at their origin from the heart to reach the left atrium from the front of the chest. Such wounds would be fatal, the patient dying from profuse haemorrhage within a few minutes. A stab wound through the back of the chest could reach the ...

INTRODUCTION Bursts of tachycardia arising in the pulmonary veins may play an important role in perpetuating atrial fibrillation (AF). However, the role of the coronary sinus (CS) in the perpetuation of AF has been unclear. The aim of this study was to determine whether the CS plays a role in perpetuation of AF. METHODS AND RESULTS Pulmonary vein isolation was performed by segmental ostial ab...

OBJECTIVES Our purpose was to determine whether atrial fibrillation (AF) patients have alterations in sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+ regulatory proteins in the atrial myocardium. BACKGROUND Clinically, AF is the most frequently encountered arrhythmia. Recent studies indicate that an inability to maintain intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis with a consequent increase in membrane-triggered activit...

INTRODUCTION It has been reported that cardiac malignant fibrous histiocytomas occur more frequently in the left side of the heart, especially in the left atrium, but rarely invade the mitral valve. We present a case with a giant malignant fibrous histiocytoma with an unusual localization involving almost the entire left atrium, mitral valve, and left superior pulmonary vein. CASE PRESENTATIO...