title: Ruptured sinus of Valsalva aneurysm simulating endocarditis.
abstract: A previously healthy, 31-year-old man was evaluated in the emergency department after being violently assaulted. A harsh, continuous murmur was noted on physical examination. Transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiograms were interpreted as showing a ruptured sinus of Valsalva aneurysm with a shunt into the right atrium and a tricuspid valve vegetation. The patient was treated with antibiotics for presumed endocarditis. Subsequent echocardiographic and surgical evaluation showed no evidence of past or present endocarditis. Rather, the sinus of Valsalva aneurysm and rupture gave the appearance of a valvular mass. This report shows some of the potential pitfalls in the delineation of abnormalities related to sinus of Valsalva aneurysms and rupture.
authors.affiliation: Cardiovascular Imaging and Hemodynamic Laboratory, New England Medical Center, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02111, USA.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kuvin
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vannan
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Corrodi
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Warner
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bojar
authors.forename: N G
authors.initials: NG
authors.lastname: Pandian
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001014:Aortic Aneurysm / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology; D001019:Aortic Rupture / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D017548:Echocardiography, Transesophageal; D004697:Endocarditis, Bacterial / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006325:Heart Atria / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012850:Sinus of Valsalva / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000293:injuries; D014261:Tricuspid Valve / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D014262:Tricuspid Valve Insufficiency / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D014754:Violence