Mitral valve prolapse and stroke: echocardiographic evidence for a missing causative link.
There is general acceptance of a causal connection between mitral valve prolapse and systemic embolic events. The precise mechanism, however, remains controversial, with current hypotheses favoring the embolization of thrombotic deposits from the abnormal mitral valve. It might be surmised that echocardiography could easily document the presence of such thrombi, but actually, this has never been reported previously. Described herein is a patient with a severe cerebrovascular accident in whom echocardiography clearly demonstrated a mass of high embolic potential attached directly to the prolapsing mitral valve leaflet.
Gross
C M
CM
Section of Cardiology, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta 30912.
Nichols
F T
FT
von Dohlen
T W
TW
D'Cruz
I A
IA
D000328:Adult; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D004452:Echocardiography; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008945:Mitral Valve Prolapse / Q000150:complications*