[Mitral valve prolapse associated with partial absence of commissural chordal insertion: report of two cases]

We reported 2 cases of mitral valve prolapse (MVP) associated with partial absence of the chordae tendineae. Case 1 was a 25-year-old man who was admitted to our hospital for further examinations of an apical pansystolic murmur (Levine 4/6) and the abnormal shadow on his chest radiograph. He was diagnosed as having grade 3 + mitral regurgitation (MR) by the Sellers classification and pulmonary varix by cardiac catheterization. Transesophageal echocardiography revealed MVP of the rough zone of the anterior mitral leaflet and MR blowing into the pulmonary varix. Case 2 was a 60-year-old man who was admitted to our hospital because of congestive heart failure and apical pansystolic murmur (Levine 4/6). Parasternal echocardiography revealed prolapse of both the anterior and posterior mitral leaflets and moderate MR. In both cases, absence of insertion of anterolateral commissural chordae was confirmed after surgery, and the abnormalities of chordal arrangement and insertion were considered as causes of MVP in these cases.