Embolus in transit.
Since the advent of echocardiography, embolus in transit, historically found during surgical exploration or on postmortem examination, has been found with increasing frequency on antemortem examination. There is an inherent high mortality rate with this condition and awareness of the association between deep venous thrombosis and embolus in transit is paramount. On echocardiography the embolus is typically seen as a pleomorphic mass moving in a tumbling fashion. The most frequent symptoms are dyspnea and near syncopal episodes. The most common signs are diastolic "tumor plop" and a systolic ejection murmur heard on auscultation. Despite the success of some medical interventions, surgery should be strongly considered in patients with embolus in transit.
Thompson
R
R
Department of Internal Medicine, St. Vincent Hospital and Health Care Center, Indianapolis, Indiana.
Slack
J D
JD
Taliercio
C P
CP
Waller
B
B
D000368:Aged; D004452:Echocardiography; D004617:Embolism / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D013923:Thromboembolism / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology; D013924:Thrombophlebitis / Q000150:complications