The Clinical Syndrome of Atrial Myxoma

Primary cardiac sarcoma presenting as acute left-sided heart failure

“…PCS located in the left atrium can cause obstruction of the mitral valve and can present with symptoms of mitral stenosis including dyspnea, cough, hemoptysis, and fatigue on exertion (8). Our patient presented with symptoms suggestive of mitral stenosis and constitutional symptoms of fever, weight loss, and fatigue, which have been reported previously, particularly with atrial myxomas (9). …”

Atrial myxoma: a review of the neurological complications, metastases, and recurrences

“…Metastasis, intraluminal only-(a) symptomatic (infarct); (b) asymptomatic. The incidence of clinically important embolisation from left atrial myxomas may be as high as 45%, with involvement of the brain in half the cases (Sylverman et al, 1962;Greenwood, 1968;Peters et al, 1974). In reviewing the literature, we found 19 patients (Sylverman et al, 1962;Joynt et al, 1965;Burton and Johnston, 1970;Price et al, 1970;New et al, 1970;Yarnell et al, 1971;Stein-metz et al, 1973;Thompson and Simmons, 1974) with demonstrated symptomatic arterial occlusion (necropsy, 14; surgery, 4; both 2) (see Table).…”

“…Patients usually present in one of three ways: (1) embolic manifestations, (2) cardiac failure, (3) fever, weight loss, malaise accompanied by raised erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), anaemia, and abnormal serum proteins (Greenwood, 1968;Peters et al, 1974). Forty-five per cent of reported cases presented with embolic manifestations, half of them with cerebral involvement (Sylverman et al, 1962;Greenwood, 1968;Peters et al, 1974).…”

“…Patients usually present in one of three ways: (1) embolic manifestations, (2) cardiac failure, (3) fever, weight loss, malaise accompanied by raised erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), anaemia, and abnormal serum proteins (Greenwood, 1968;Peters et al, 1974). Forty-five per cent of reported cases presented with embolic manifestations, half of them with cerebral involvement (Sylverman et al, 1962;Greenwood, 1968;Peters et al, 1974). Only recently has it been recognised that we face not only local recurrence of the tumour (Gerbode et al, 1967;Bahl et al, 1969;Read et al, 1974;Dang and Hurley, 1976) but distant mycotic aneurysms, caused by tumour invasion of vessel walls, long after the atrial myxoma itself has been removed .…”

Surgical treatment of atrial myxomas, 6 years’ experience via standard sternotomy

“…Cardiac tumors enter into the differential diagnosis of virtually every cardiovascular syndrome. Cardiologists should think of them in the early stages of physical assessment of the patient because the most common cardiac tumor, atrial myxoma, is "devastating but curable" [2] . Yet, it is gloomily claimed that only 5 to 10 percent of cardiac tumors are clinically diagnosable [3] .…”