War and the Development of Cardiac Surgery.

Despite all the devastating effects, wars have made some very significant positive impact in the development of cardiac surgery. Heart is an organ that cannot be stopped even for a minute, there by making it very difficult for the surgeons to operate. The wars of the Twentieth Century, particularly the two Great wars produced a significant number of patients with heart injury to reach surgeons’ operating tables. This gave the surgeons a unique opportunity to study, operate, practice and research cardiac surgical patients. Notable names including Wilfred Bigelow, Walton Lillehei, John Gibbon, Christian Cabrol, Vasilii Kolessov and Alexander Vishnevsky all were world war veterans and utilized their wartime experience later on in the development of cardiac surgery. Had there not been the two great wars, the development of cardiac surgery would have been delayed probably by years.

Left Atrial Myxoma in a Child: An Uncommon Presentation of a Rare Tumour in Early Age.

Myxomas are rare tumours but are the most common benign tumours of the heart. They can arise from any heart chamber. However, they arise more frequently from the left atrium. They have rarely been described as originating in early age. A case of left atrial myxoma successfully removed using cardiopulmonary bypass in a 8-year-old child is presented. Review of the literature emphasizes the rarity and clinically aggressive behavior of this tumor in this age group. The object of this case report is to present myxoma in children and to evaluate possible differences between young and adult patients.

Left Atrial Myxoma in a Child: An Uncommon Presentation of a Rare Tumour in Early Age.

Myxomas are rare tumours but are the most common benign tumours of the heart. They can arise from any heart chamber. However, they arise more frequently from the left atrium. They have rarely been described as originating in early age. A case of left atrial myxoma successfully removed using cardiopulmonary bypass in a 8-year-old child is presented. Review of the literature emphasizes the rarity and clinically aggressive behavior of this tumor in this age group. The object of this case report is to present myxoma in children and to evaluate possible differences between young and adult patients.