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Acquired ventricular septal defect and mitral insufficiency without pericardial effusion after stab wound to the
W H Pasteuning1, W F Wonnink-de Jonge, D P van Berge Henegouwen
1Department of Cardiology, Sint Elisabeth Ziekenhuis, Tilburg, The Netherlands.
Abstract:
Echocardiography has a role in the management of acute complications of penetrating cardiac trauma. We report the case of a 30-year-old man who sustained a stab wound to the chest. In this case a traumatic perforation of the ventricular septum and the anterior leaflet of the mitral valve caused by a knife occurred without pericardial effusion. The diagnosis was made by transthoracic echocardiography. The ability of transesophageal echocardiography to delineate the intracardiac injuries more precisely helped to guide the surgical procedure.