[Left ventricular myxoma with special reference to diagnostic approach: report of a case]

A 36-year-old male with left ventricular myxoma was presented. The patient had no significant cardiac symptoms except for premature ventricular contractions. The diagnosis was made by two-dimensional echocardiography and cineangiography. The both visualized a tumor of 1.5 cm in diameter which was mobile in the anterior portion of the left ventricle at the level of the chordae tendineae. The accuracy of these techniques was confirmed at the time of operation. In the diagnosis of this lesion, two-dimensional echocardiography was superior to angiography because the stalk connecting the tumor with the anterior left ventricular wall was well visualized. M-mode echocardiography visualized an abnormal echo behind the interventricular septum, but failed to demonstrate the shape, size, mobility and stalk of the tumor. The tumor was not visualized by computerized tomography and RI angiography. The importance of two-dimensional echocardiography was emphasized in the diagnosis of a left ventricular myxoma, even if it is small.