Partial tearing of the interventricular septum after blunt chest trauma.

Cardiac trauma after blunt chest trauma is a rare complication of patients arriving alive to an emergency department. We here present the case of patient who had a partial rupture of the interventricular septum after having had a blunt chest trauma in a traffic accident. As there was no ventricular septal defect, conservative management was deemed appropriate. At 3-year follow-up, the patient was free of right heart failure symptoms suggestive of the septal defect progression.

Diagnostic dilemma: Intracardiac mass in a woman with Behçet's syndrome / Dilema diagnóstico: masa intracardiaca en una paciente con síndrome de Behçet

Intracardiac thrombosis is a rare manifestation of cardiac involvement in Behçet's disease, and it may be mistaken for a heart tumor. In this letter we present the case of a patient diagnosed with Behçet's disease who was incidentally found to have a mass in the right atrium suspicious of a cardiac tumor. Nevertheless, cardiac magnetic resonance showed a cardiac thrombus. Immunosuppressive therapy and anticoagulation were effective for thrombus resolution.

La trombosis intracardiaca es una manifestación muy rara del compromiso cardiaco en la enfermedad de Behçet, la cual puede confundirse con una masa tumoral. Se presenta el caso de una paciente con esta enfermedad a quien de manera incidental se le detectó una masa intraauricular derecha sugestiva de tumor intracardiaco. Sin embargo los hallazgos de la resonancia magnética cardiaca fueron los de un trombo intracavitario que se resolvió con tratamiento inmunosupresor y terapia anticoagulante.

Diagnostic dilemma: Intracardiac mass in a woman with Behçet's syndrome.

Intracardiac thrombosis is a rare manifestation of cardiac involvement in Behçet's disease, and it may be mistaken for a heart tumor. In this letter we present the case of a patient diagnosed with Behçet's disease who was incidentally found to have a mass in the right atrium suspicious of a cardiac tumor. Nevertheless, cardiac magnetic resonance showed a cardiac thrombus. Immunosuppressive therapy and anticoagulation were effective for thrombus resolution.

Chloroquine cardiomyopathy: beyond ocular adverse effects.

A 36-year-old woman who had received long-term treatment with chloroquine for systemic lupus erythematosus developed a third degree atrioventricular block and required a permanent pacemaker. Notably, left ventricular thickening and mild systolic dysfunction were noticed on echocardiography as well as on cardiac MRI. As there was no clear explanation for myocardial findings, the patient underwent an endomyocardial biopsy that demonstrated vacuolar degeneration of myocytes on light microscopy and curvilinear bodies on electron microscopy, both findings consistent with chloroquine toxicity. The drug was withheld and treatment with candesartan and carvedilol was prescribed. At 2-year follow-up, the patient remained asymptomatic and left ventricular systolic function had improved. Physicians who prescribe antimalarial drugs for rheumatic diseases should be aware of the potentially life-threatening effects of chloroquine on the heart.

[Ventricular septal defects in adults: 15 years of surgical experience in a single Colombian cardiovascular center]. / Comunicación interventricular en adultos: experiencia quirúrgica de 15 años en un centro cardiovascular Colombiano.

OBJECTIVE: To review the surgical experience with ventricular septal defects in adults in Colombia. METHOD: Descriptive, retrospective study of surgically repaired patients between 1995 and 2010. Clinical, echocardiographic, hemodynamic, and surgical findings were related to hospital and outpatient outcomes. RESULTS: Fifty-two patients were analyzed (mean age 29.3 ± 9.9 years, 54% women). Ventricular septal defects were classified, according to the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, as type 2 (membranous, 84.6%), type 1 (subarterial, 13.5%), and type 3 (inlet, 1.9%). Dyspnea, Qp/Qs ≥ 2, and pulmonary hypertension were the most common indications for surgery. No peri-operative deaths were found. Outpatient mean follow-up was 2.7 ± 3.6 years and was possible for 90% of the original cohort and late mortality was 5% (one case). Despite that residual ventricular septal defects (29%) were frequent, no patient required surgical re-intervention for this reason. Improvements in functional class and pulmonary artery systolic pressure were also observed. CONCLUSIONS: Surgical closure of ventricular septal defects in adults is a safe procedure without early mortality and a low complications index. Residual ventricular septal defects underline the need for life-long follow-up.

Comunicación interventricular en adultos: experiencia quirúrgica de 15 años en un centro cardiovascular colombiano / Ventricular septal defects in adults: 15 years of surgical experience in a single Colombian cardiovascular center

Objetivo: Revisar la experiencia en la cirugía de comunicación interventricular en adultos. Método: Estudio descriptivo en pacientes con comunicación interventricular intervenidos quirúrgicamente entre los años 1995 y 2010. Se analizaron los hallazgos clínicos, ecocardiográficos, hemodinámicos, quirúrgicos y los relacionados con desenlaces intrahospitalarios y ambulatorios. Resultados: Fueron incluidos 52 casos, edad 29.3 ± 9.9 años, 54% mujeres. Según la clasificación de la Sociedad de Cirujanos del Tórax, las comunicaciones interventriculares fueron: tipo 2 (membranosa), 84.6%, tipo 1 (subarterial), 13.5%, y tipo 3 (tracto de entrada), 1.9%. La disnea de esfuerzos, el índice Qp/Qs ≥ 2 y la hipertensión pulmonar fueron las principales indicaciones de intervención. No se presentaron muertes perioperatorias. El seguimiento posterior al alta fue posible en el 90% de los casos, en promedio 2.7 ± 3.6 años, y solo hubo un caso de mortalidad tardía. Los defectos residuales fueron frecuentes (29%), sin embargo, ningún paciente fue sometido a reintervenciones por este motivo. La mayoría de los pacientes mejoraron su clase funcional y las cifras de presión sistólica pulmonar. Conclusiones: La cirugía de cierre de la comunicación interventricular en adultos es un procedimiento seguro, sin mortalidad temprana y con un bajo índice de complicaciones perioperatorias. La presencia de defectos residuales enfatiza la necesidad de seguimiento vitalicio en este grupo de pacientes.

Objective: To review the surgical experience with ventricular septal defects in adults in Colombia. Method: Descriptive, retrospective study of surgically repaired patients between 1995 and Heart septal defects; 2010. Clinical, echocardiographic, hemodynamic, and surgical findings were related to hospital Pulmonary and outpatient outcomes. Results: Fifty-two patients were analyzed (mean age 29.3±9.9 years, 54% women). Ventricular septal defects were classified, according to the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, as type 2 (membranous, 84.6%), type 1 (subarterial, 13.5%), and type 3 (inlet, 1.9%). Dyspnea, Qp/Qs ≥ 2, and pulmonary hypertension were the most common indications for surgery. No peri-operative deaths were found. Outpatient mean follow-up was 2.7±3.6 years and was possible for 90% of the original cohort and late mortality was 5% (one case). Despite that residual ventricular septal defects (29%) were frequent, no patient required surgical re-intervention for this reason. Improvements in functional class and pulmonary artery systolic pressure were also observed. Conclusions: Surgical closure of ventricular septal defects in adults is a safe procedure without early mortality and a low complications index. Residual ventricular septal defects underline the need for life-long follow-up.