Left atrial tumour mimicking pulmonary embolism

Primary cardiac tumours have been described as great imitators. They are rare, and clinical presentations are diverse. Diagnosis is usually made by two-dimensional echocardiography. The present case report describes a case where a left atrial fibrosarcoma eluded diagnosis by echocardiography, and wa...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Respiratory medicine 1997-10, Vol.91 (9), p.562-564
Main Authors: Seal, E.C., Rutter, H.R., Horrigan, M.C., Britton, M.G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Biological and medical sciences
Cardiology. Vascular system
Diagnosis, Differential
Echocardiography
Female
Heart
Heart Atria
Heart Neoplasms - diagnostic imaging
Humans
Lung - diagnostic imaging
Medical sciences
Pulmonary Embolism - diagnosis
Radionuclide Imaging
Sarcoma - diagnostic imaging
Tomography, X-Ray Computed
Tumors of the heart
Ventilation-Perfusion Ratio
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Description
Summary:Primary cardiac tumours have been described as great imitators. They are rare, and clinical presentations are diverse. Diagnosis is usually made by two-dimensional echocardiography. The present case report describes a case where a left atrial fibrosarcoma eluded diagnosis by echocardiography, and was eventually demonstrated by computed tomography. Management was complicated by the presence of persistent mismatch demonstrated by ventilation-perfusion lung scans. The likely mechanism underlying this phenomenon is discussed.
ISSN:0954-6111
1532-3064
DOI:10.1016/S0954-6111(97)90091-3