The surgical treatment of atrial myxomas. Clinical experience and results in eight patients.

Between 1983 and 1988, eight patients underwent excision of left atrial myxomas at the Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education & Research, Calcutta. There were five females and three males. The presenting symptoms and signs often simulated mitral stenosis or insufficiency, and the diagnosis was confirmed by echocardiography and angiocardiography. One patient presented with features of cerebral embolism. The myxomas were successfully removed under cardiopulmonary bypass in all patients, either by shaving them from the atrial septum, or by excising a portion of normal atrial septum with the tumour. Small tumours were removed through left atriotomy, while a biatrial approach was utilised for large tumours. There was one perioperative death, and another patient died one and half years later, probably due to tumour embolisation in brain. Late functional results have been excellent in all the other patients. Two dimensional echocardiography has proved to be extremely accurate in early diagnosis of myxomas and in the late follow up of patients. The pertinent literature is reviewed.