Levoatriocardinal vein: a rarely recognized cause of recurrent cardiac and cerebral thromboembolic events

We describe the case of a 43-year-old patient who presented with a transient ischemic attack episode, desaturation and ventricular arrhythmias. Transesophageal echocardiography diagnosed a PFO, whilst magnetic resonance imaging revealed two small myocardial infarcts, despite normal coronaries on subsequent angiography. Echocardiography and cardiac CT revealed a LACV with bidirectional flow. The patient underwent percutaneous LACV and PFO closure, with immediate saturation increase following occlusion of the LACV. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time a LACV is identified as the cause of recurrent thromboembolic events.
Source: Canadian Journal of Cardiology - Category: Cardiology Source Type: research