Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 28, 2026

An Image Guided Transapical Mitral Valve Leaflet Puncture Model of Controlled Volume Overload from Mitral Regurgitation in the Rat
Published on: May 19, 2020
[Unilateral pulmonary edema in two patients with mitral regurgitation]
1Klinik für Innere Medizin, St.-Antonius-Hospital, Akademisches Lehrkrankenhaus der RWTH-Aachen, Eschweiler. andreas.niedeggen@sah-eschweiler.de
History:
Two patients were admitted with dyspnoea, the first after an infection, the second in association with an ischemic cardiomyopathy.
Investigations:
Chest radiography displayed an interstitial infiltrate in the right upper lobe in the first patient and in the right lower lobe in the second one. In both patients the transthoracic echocardiogram (TEE) showed significant mitral regurgitation with systolic reversal of flow as far as the right superior and inferior pulmonary veins, respectively.
Diagnosis, Treatment And Course:
Both patients had unilateral pulmonary edema associated with mitral regurgitation. Mitral valvuloplasty was performed in the first patient while the second one was treated medically.
Conclusion:
Unilateral pulmonary edema associated with mitral regurgitation is a distinct but unusual clinical entity, often misdiagnosed initially as being caused by one of the more common focal lung diseases. The TEE indicated the cause and provided the reason for the mechanism of the edema formation.
Related Concept Videos
Mitral Regurgitation IV: Nursing Management
Mitral Regurgitation II: Clinical Features and Diagnostic Tests
Mitral Regurgitation I: Introduction
Mitral Stenosis II: Clinical features and Diagnostic Tests
Pulmonary Edema II: Pathophysiology
Mitral Regurgitation III: Medical Management

