Traumatic Rupture of the Left Atrial Appendage: Perioperative Management and Echocardiographic Challenges

CARDIAC TRAUMA represents less than 10% of all trauma admissions, but it carries a high mortality, whether penetrating or blunt in nature.1,2 Blunt cardiac traumatic injury often is related to motor vehicle accidents and rarely includes rupture of the left atrium that may be a life-threatening emergency.1-3 The authors report such a complex case in which a focal rupture of the left atrial appendage was managed successfully in a multidisciplinary setting.

Source: Journal of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia - February 4, 2020 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Rohesh J. Fernando, Brittany Y. Anderson, John G.T. Augoustides, Elizabeth Zhou, Brian Radvansky, Bryan E. Marchant, Benjamin E. Morris, Stuart J. Weiss, Prakash A. Patel Tags: Case Conference Source Type: research