title: Primary left atrial angiosarcoma mimicking severe mitral valve stenosis.
abstract: Primary cardiac tumours are quite rare and most of these tumours are benign. In this report, a patient presented with heart failure symptoms attributable to severe mitral valve stenosis. Echocardiography showed a dense left atrial mass causing functional mitral valve obstruction. The morphological and intraoperative presentation was highly suggestive of a myxoma but histopathological examination found a primary pedunculated cardiac angiosarcoma. The role of two dimensional and transoesophageal echocardiography in the assessment of cardiac masses and tumours is discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology and Angiology, Hospital of the University of Münster, Münster, Germany.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Engelen
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bruch
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hoffmeier
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kersting
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Stypmann
mesh_terms: D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D017548:Echocardiography, Transesophageal; D005260:Female; D006325:Heart Atria; D006338:Heart Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006394:Hemangiosarcoma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D008946:Mitral Valve Stenosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*