Giant extracardiac unruptured aneurysm of the sinus of Valsalva: a case report

Extracardiac unruptured aneurysm of the sinus of Valsalva (ASV) is rare and difficult to diagnose accurately by echocardiography or cardiac catheteriz ation preoperatively. A 63-year-old woman, with dyspnea and palpitations, d iagnosed with aortic regurgitation (AR) with congestive heart failure and e xtracardiac unruptured ASV, was referred to our hospital for surgical repai r. The unruptured ASV was well visualized by magnetic resonance imaging (MR I), and diagnosed as an extracardiac type. Surgical repair was performed by aortic valve replacement and aneurysmectomy. It was concluded that early s urgical repair of extracardiac ASV should be considered to prevent sudden d eath, and MRI is an accurate and useful method for preoperative diagnosis.