A case of organic mania associated with open heart surgery

Organic mania has been reported to have multiple etiologies. A case is described of a patient who developed mania following a coronary artery bypass graft and mitral valve replacement. Cerebral abnormalities were not detected by computed tomographic or magnetic resonance imaging scans, but an area of dysfunction was found using single photon emission computed tomographic (SPECT) imaging. The lesion resolved when the patient became clinically asymptomatic. The area of decreased cerebral perfusion associated with the patient's mania was in an atypical location, raising questions about which brain regions can result in well-defined psychiatric syndromes.