CARDIAC PAPILLARY FIBROELASTOMA - CLINIC FEATURES

Papillary fibroelastoma is an uncommon cardiac tumor rarely diagnosed during life, Although most fibroelastomas are incidental findings at a utopsy, a few cases have been associated with cardiac symptoms that in clude angina, arterial embolism and sudden death. We report the case o f two patients, a 35-year-old male with an acute myocardial infarction and ventricular fibrillation and a 53-year-old asymptomatic female, w ith cardiac masses first detected by transthoracic echocardiography. A more detailed morphological study was provided by transesophageal ech ocardiography. After cardiac surgery, the anatomical study demonstrate d that both tumors were papillary fibroelastomas. The literature conce rning papillary fibroelastoma is reviewed.