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Published on: February 8, 2022
Right Atrial Blood Cyst with Stones Suspended from the Coronary Sinus
Feridoun Sabzi1, Aghigh Heydari1, Atefeh Asadmobini1
1Cardiovascular Research Center, Kermanshah, Iran.
Insights
This study details a rare cardiac blood cyst in a 76-year-old man, a condition typically seen in infants. The adult case highlights the importance of considering unusual diagnoses in older patients with cardiac abnormalities like patent foramen ovale.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Pathology
Background:
- Cardiac blood cysts are rare, benign neoplasms, often remnants of the Chiari network, typically found in infants.
- They usually involve cardiac valves and are seldom diagnosed in adults.
Observation:
- A 76-year-old male presented with dyspnea and was diagnosed with a patent foramen ovale (PFO) and a mobile cystic mass in the right atrium.
- Initial echocardiography suggested a tumor or thrombus, necessitating surgical intervention.
Findings:
- Open-heart surgery revealed a cardiac blood cyst on the coronary sinus valve of the right atrium, containing small, stone-like structures.
- This is the first reported case of a right atrial blood cyst with nodular structures in an adult with PFO in Iran, and the second globally.
Implications:
- This case expands the known clinical spectrum of cardiac blood cysts to include adult presentation with PFO.
- It underscores the need for thorough diagnostic evaluation in adults with cardiac masses, even when symptoms are atypical for common conditions.
Abstract:
Cardiac blood cysts are rare benign neoplasms, usually involving the cardiac valves and are remnants of the Chiari network. They are usually detected in the first six months of life and rarely occur in children or adults. We report a 76-year-old male patient who was referred to the Imam Ali Hospital affiliated with Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran, in 2018 with dyspnoea. Transthoracic echocardiography revealed a small patent foramen ovale (PFO) and a circumferential mobile cystic mass in the right atrium, with the impression of a tumour or thrombus. The patient underwent open-heart surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass to repair to PFO and remove the intra-atrial lesion. During surgical examination of the right atrial cavity, a blood cyst containing small stone-like structures on the coronary sinus valve of the right atrium was found. The post-operative course was uneventful and no recurrence of tumour was detected during six months of follow-up. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case of a right atrial blood cyst with a few nodule-like stones in an adult with PFO in Iran and the second case in an adult with PFO worldwide.
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