Copyright © 2006, The European Society of Cardiology
Aorto-mitral inflammation in rheumatological disease: Transoesophageal echocardiographic presentation
aDepartment of Cardiology, Aarhus University Hospital, Skejby, 8200 Aarhus N, Denmark
bDepartment of Thoracic Surgery, Aarhus University Hospital, Skejby, 8200 Aarhus N, Denmark
cInstitute of Pathology, Aarhus University Hospital, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
Received 2 April 2006; received in revised form 16 June 2006; accepted after revision 22 June 2006.
nhkrarup{at}mail.dk
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +45 26 393 307.
| Abstract |
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Thickening of the aortic root and anterior mitral leaflet has been described in patients with aortic valve insufficiency associated with ankylosing spondylitis. We report identical findings made by transthoracic and transoesophageal echocardiography in three patients with inflammatory, non-infective aorto-mitral pathology as manifestation of various rheumatological disorders. All three patients had significant aortic valve incompetence. All three had thickened walls of the sinuses of Valsalvae and a thickened anterior mitral leaflet, in one case with chordal rupture. These findings were confirmed at open heart surgery, and further characterized by histological examination.
Keywords: Aorto-mitral inflammation; Aortic valve insufficiency; Rheumatological disease; Transesophageal echocardiography