Congenital aneurysm of the left atrial appendage

Abstract

Congenital aneurysm of the left atrial appendage is quite infrequent. Most instances are asymptomatic. Patients can report a variety of symptoms, one of the most frequent being onset of auricular tachyarrhythmia. Various imaging techniques are useful in diagnosis and allow the differential diagnosis with other pathologies. We describe the case of a 24-year-old male with congenital aneurysm of the left atrial appendage. The patient presented with auricular fibrillation. Diagnosis was based on transthoracic and trans-esophageal echocardiography, and the patient was treated by surgical resection of the aneurysm under extracorporeal circulation.