Infective Endocarditis is an extremely rare etiology of sinus of Valsalva-right atrial fistulas, abnormal connections between the aorta and the right atrium. We report the case of a 21-year-old female patient with native aortic valve Staphylococcus aureus endocarditis complicated by sinus of Valsalva abscess perforation associated with an acute heart block, an aorto-right atrial fistula, severe...

The durability of the aortic valve after aortic root reconstruction by an aortic valve-sparing procedure is of particular concern because of the absence of the sinuses of Valsalva in the David type-I reimplantation method. Various improvements have been made to the David-I method. In particular, a new aortic root conduit with the sinuses of Valsalva was developed recently and is expected to imp...

A 66-year-old man presented with exertional dyspnea. He was found to have an unruptured aneurysm of the right sinus of Valsalva causing significant right ventricular outflow obstruction. This aneurysm was diagnosed by transthoracic two-dimensional echocardiography, transthoracic three-dimensional echocardiography, transesophageal echocardiography, contrast echocardiography and 64-slice multidet...

A 61-year-old man was admitted to the hospital because of orthopnea and was diagnosed with heart failure with a continuous heart murmur. A transthoracic echocardiogram revealed turbulent flow from the right coronary sinus of Valsalva to the right atrium throughout the cardiac cycle. Aortography confirmed the presence of a shunt jet from the right coronary sinus of Valsalva to the right atrium. ...

Sinus of Valsalva aneurysms are rare. Sinus of Valsalva aneurysms are frequently associated with ventricular septal defect (VSD) and aortic regurgitation. They often remain asymptomatic until abruptly presenting with acute chest pain and heart failure secondary to rupture. Here, we describe a case of 20-year-old man who presented with chest pain with a history of VSD. Initial work-up concluded ...

To determine the possible relationship between left ventricular dilatation and heart rate changes provoked by the Valsalva maneuver (Valsalva ratio), we studied 9 patients with isolated chronic aortic insufficiency. Left ventricular systolic function was assessed by two-dimensional echocardiography and cardiac catheterization. All patients were asymptomatic (functional class I of the New York H...

he presence of rupture of a sinus of Valsalva aneurysm can be clinically suspected when an abrupt onset of congestive heart failure is accompanied by a continuous murmur, evidence of right and left ventricular volume overload, and bounding peripheral pulses. Classically, the diagnosis has been confirmed by angiography, but several reports ruggest that M-mode and two-dimensional echocardiography...

Paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT) is a common clinical problem. Valsalva maneuver and adenosine are effective therapies for many patients with PSVT, although any conversion to an irregular or wide complex tachycardia should prompt consideration of a preexcitation syndrome. We report a case where the Valsalva maneuver and adenosine, in a patient with PSVT and previously undiagnosed ...

Sinus of Valsalva aneurysm is a rare cardiac disorder. It is more frequently a congenital, but it may also be an acquired condition. Takayasu's disease is an extremely rare cause of this disorder. Most cases of unruptured sinus of Valsalva aneurysm are asymptomatic. Compression of the left coronary artery is an unusual manifestation of the disease that can cause angina, myocardial infarction or...

The surgical approach to the repair of a ruptured sinus of Valsalva aneurysm can depend on the cardiac chamber into which rupture occurs. This report details the color flow Doppler images in two patients who developed a right sinus of Valsalva aneurysm to right atrial fistula owing to bacterial endocarditis. In both cases, the color flow Doppler image was superior to contrast aortography in ide...