Atrial-esophageal fistula shown by transthoracic echocardiogram

Nontraumatic atrial-esophageal fistula is a catastrophic problem usually diagnosed postmortem and almost invariably fatal. We report the first case of a patient in whom the diagnosis of atrial-esophageal fistula was made from a transthoracic echocardiography antemortem. Echocardiography showed multiple microbubbles in the left atrium and ventricle emanating from the posterior aspect of the left atrium adjacent to the pulmonary veins. The literature is reviewed and the significance of the case and the echocardiogram is discussed.