title: Left atrial myxoma: a case presentation and review of the literature.
abstract: Cardiac myxomas account for 24% of all primary cardiac tumors. The majority occur in the left atrium and are attached via a pedunculated stalk. The presentation may mimic primary myocardial dysfunction or obstructive valvular disease. Frequently, the diagnosis is delayed secondary to only vague constitutional symptoms. In this article, we present a case of a left atrial myxoma discovered after thoracic surgery in a patient with elevated pulmonary pressures thought to be secondary to mitral stenosis, and demonstrate how transesophageal echocardiography is useful in the evaluation of critically ill patients with cardiac tumors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, West Virginia University School of Medicine, Morgantown, USA.
authors.forename: D A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Law
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Dulaney
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Graeber
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006325:Heart Atria; D006338:Heart Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D006439:Hemodynamics; D006801:Humans; D009232:Myxoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology