Case Report: Residual Atrial Shunt Lesions in Aging Adults With Congenital Heart Disease: An Underestimated Risk of Stroke?

Front Cardiovasc Med. 2022 Mar 16:9:847244. doi: 10.3389/fcvm.2022.847244. eCollection 2022.

Abstract

We report two cases of paradoxical cerebral embolism in adults with congenital heart disease (ACHD) with residual atrial shunt lesions, a 59 year-old male patient with partial detachment of a surgical ASD closure patch, and a 57 year-old male patient with Ebstein's anomaly and a large patent foramen ovale. Considering these mechanisms and the increasing incidence of venous thrombosis with age, a higher prevalence of paradoxical embolism in ACHD patients with residual atrial shunts may be suspected. Regular follow-up of patients with ACHD remains important throughout life even in seemingly stable lesions.

Keywords: ASD; Ebstein anomaly; adults with congenital heart disease; cardioembolic and cryptogenic stroke; case report; echocardiography; embolic stroke.

Publication types

  • Case Reports