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Huge interatrial septal aneurysm: a coincidental but rather fatal finding

Petros Tzimas1, Georgios Papadopoulos

  • 1Department of Anesthesia and Postoperative Intensive Care, School of Medicine, University Hospital of Ioannina, University of Ioannina, 451 10 Ioannina, Greece.

Case Reports in Medicine
|February 15, 2011
PubMed

Insights

A rare interatrial septal aneurysm, found during surgery for coronary artery disease, led to a fatal outcome. Despite successful bypass grafting, massive emboli prevented the patient

Area of Science:

  • Cardiovascular Surgery
  • Echocardiography
  • Pathology

Background:

  • Patient presented for elective coronary artery bypass grafting due to severe coronary artery disease.
  • Intraoperative diagnosis of a cardiac anomaly was critical.

Observation:

  • A huge interatrial septal aneurysm was incidentally discovered during surgery.
  • Transesophageal echocardiography identified the aneurysm, initially resembling a right atrial tumor.

Findings:

  • The interatrial septal aneurysm was resected.
  • Coronary artery bypass grafting was successfully completed.
  • The patient experienced massive embolic events, preventing separation from cardiopulmonary bypass.

Implications:

  • Interatrial septal aneurysms can be a critical intraoperative finding with potentially fatal consequences.
  • Early detection and management strategies for septal anomalies during cardiac surgery require further investigation.
  • Massive embolic events pose a significant risk following resection of cardiac masses or anomalies.

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