Rupture of cerebral myxomatous aneurysm months after resection of the primary cardiac tumor.
BACKGROUND
The natural history of cerebral aneurysms derived from metastatic spread of cardiac myxomas is not well known, and their management presents many dilemmas.


METHODS
Case report and literature review.


RESULTS
An 18-year-old man presented with an intraparenchymal hemorrhage several months after resection of an atrial myxoma. Angiography showed several myxomatous aneurysms, one of which had bled. The patient had a recurrent hemorrhage before undergoing surgical resection. MRI, angiographic, and pathological data are presented for this rare condition.


CONCLUSIONS
Myxomatous aneurysms are important entities for neurointensivists to recognize and can present years after diagnosis. Patients presenting with cerebral infarction or hemorrhage of unknown etiology should undergo cardiac imaging to rule out atrial myxoma, as up to 50% of patients with myxomas present initially with stroke.
Eddleman
Christopher S
CS
Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, 251 E. Huron, Chicago, IL 60611, USA.
Gottardi-Littell
Numa R
NR
Bendok
Bernard R
BR
Batjer
H Hunt
HH
Bernstein
Richard A
RA
D000293:Adolescent; D002533:Cerebral Angiography; D002543:Cerebral Hemorrhage / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery; D006338:Heart Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D002532:Intracranial Aneurysm / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D009232:Myxoma / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery*