Atrial myxoma: a 25-year single-institutional follow-up study.
OBJECTIVE
A single-institutional study on atrial myxoma. Patient data and data obtained from the survivors during follow-up were reviewed.


METHODS
We studied 109 patients (61.5% female) who underwent surgical excision of atrial myxoma between January 1980 and December 2005. Mean age at the time of surgery was 60 +/- 14 years (range 1-83 years). Overall survival and atrial myxoma recurrence were determined by Kaplan-Meier analysis. Linearized rates of recurrence at follow-up are reported.


RESULTS
One hundred and two (93.6%) of the 109 tumours were found in the left atrium. Comparative mean age distribution revealed a significant difference between patients operated on between 1980 and 1992 and patients operated on between 1993 and 2005 (55 +/- 15 and 63 +/- 13 years, respectively; P < 0.05). All patients survived the operation. Three patients were lost to follow-up. The 15-year and 25-year survival rates were 91 +/- 4% and 72 +/- 12%, respectively. Survival of patients after myxoma removal did not significantly differ from the expected survival of the general population. Recurrent myxomas developed in two patients (mean age 50 +/- 7 years) with a 25-year freedom from reoperation of 96 +/- 3% and a linearized rate of 0.17 +/- 0.12%/year.


CONCLUSIONS
Myxomas tend to be observed in a more elderly and higher-risk population, often at an early stage. The extended follow-up of patients with intracardiac myxomas shows that surgical excision of such tumours is curative with low mortality and good long-term outcome.
D'Alfonso
Alessandro
A
Division of Cardiac Surgery, Presidio Lancisi, Ospedali Riuniti, Ancona, Italy. a.dalfonso@virgilio.it
Catania
Salvatore
S
Pierri
Michele D
MD
Matteucci
Sacha Lm
SL
Rescigno
Giuseppe
G
Münch
Christopher
C
Staine
Josephine
J
Iacobone
Gianfranco
G
Piccoli
Gian Piero
GP
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006325:Heart Atria; D006338:Heart Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality* / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009232:Myxoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality* / Q000601:surgery