Coronary angiographic finding of thrombus in the left atrial appendage.
OBJECTIVE
The value of coronary angiography in the diagnosis of thrombus in the left atrial appendage (LAA) was retrospectively analyzed.


METHODS
The study covers 34 patients in whom coronary angiography showed coronary neovascularity in LAA with coronary artery-left atrial fistula indicating LAA thrombus. All 34 patients underwent transthoracic echocardiography within one week of coronary angiography. Open-heart surgery was undertaken 2-31 months after angiography in 28 patients.


RESULTS
Coronary neovascularity and coronary artery-left atrial fistula arose from the left circumflex artery in 28 patients, and from the left circumflex artery and the right coronary artery in the remaining 6 patients. By echocardiography, LAA thrombus was detected in only one of the 34 patients. In 18 of the 28 patients who underwent open-heart surgery, LAA thrombus was found at surgery to have resolved.


CONCLUSIONS
Coronary angiography is useful in the diagnosis of LAA thrombus, and coronary neovascularity and fistula formation may indicate that the thrombus can spontaneously resolve.
Department of Radiology, Nagasaki University School of Medicine, Japan.
I
I
Sakamoto
K
K
Hayashi
N
N
Matsunaga
Y
Y
Ogawa
Y
Y
Matsuoka
T
T
Okimoto
M
M
Takagi
K
K
Yano
G
G
Toda
Y
Y
Miyahara
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D017023:Coronary Angiography; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D005260:Female; D005402:Fistula / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006325:Heart Atria / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008946:Mitral Valve Stenosis / Q000150:complications; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013927:Thrombosis / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*