OBJECTIVE Heart valve abnormalities are commonly found in patients with antiphospholipid syndrome but experience with valve replacement in such patients is limited. We analyzed the results of valve replacement in patients with this condition at our institution. METHODS Between 1989 and 2002, 10 patients with antiphospholipid syndrome (8 women, 2 men; aged 38-73 years, mean 49 years) with seve...

Valvular heart disease is the common cardiac manifestation of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) with a tendency for mitral valve regurgitation. In this study we report a case of mitral valve replacement for mitral stenosis caused by Libman-Sacks endocarditis in the setting of SLE. In addition, we provide a systematic review of the literature on mitral valve surgery in the presence of Libman-Sa...

Background: Primary intra cardiac tumors are rare. In this article, we present papillary fibroelastoma of mitral valve chordae. Case Presentation: A 35-year old man presented with atypical chest pain and palpitation. Physical examination and electrocardiogram were normal. Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) revealed a mass of 1015 mm attached to chordae of anteromedial papillary muscle of ...

Ebstein's anomaly of the tricuspid valve is characterised by downstream displacement of the tricuspid leaflets. In the case of the septal leaflet, the result is exaggerated offsetting of the atrioventricular valves. Thus it might be supposed that in Ebstein's anomaly of the mitral valve, downstream displacement of the aortic (septal) leaflet of the mitral valve could move its attachment beyond ...

Microangiopathic hemolytic anemia occurs in a diverse group of disorders, including thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura, hemolytic uremic syndrome, and prosthetic cardiac valves. Hemolytic anemia also occurs as a rare complication after mitral valve repair. In this report, we describe a case of microangiopathic hemolytic anemia following myxoma excision and mitral valve repair, which was presen...

A 47-year-old man presented with 1-day history of dyspnoea and near syncope. Electrocardiography showed sinus rhythm and chest X-ray showed mild cardiomegaly. Serum troponin I was mildly elevated at 0.371 ug/l. Arterial blood gases showed hypoxaemia with pO2 of 55mmHg. Transthoracic echocardiography revealed dilated left atrium (LA) and severe mitral regurgitation refluxing into pulmonary veins...

BACKGROUND Apical ballooning syndrome (or Takotsubo cardiomyopathy) is a syndrome of transient left ventricular apical ballooning. Although first described in Japanese patients, it is now well reported in the Caucasian population. The syndrome mimicks an acute myocardial infarction but is characterised by the absence of obstructive coronary disease. We describe a serious and poorly understood c...

Mitral valve prolapse: harbinger of death or variant of normal? It is 21 years since Barlow and colleagues recognised prolapse of the posterior leaflet of the mitral valve during angiography and related this to the auscultatory phenomena of the late systolic click and murmur.' Two years earlier in 1961 Reid, also from South Africa, had first proposed that the features were of mitral rather than...