Age-dependent association between aneurysmal and isolated redundant inter-atrial septum with patent foramen ovale.

BACKGROUND

Interatrial septum (IAS) could be redundant by abnormal movement with or without aneurysmal bulging. We aimed to determine the prevalence of isolated redundant and aneurysmal IAS motion and their probable relationship with age and presence of patent foramen ovale (PFO) in a large-scale referral center.

METHOD

A total of 15,288 patients who underwent transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) at Tehran Heart Center were included From March 2019 to March 2021. Contrast echocardiography was conducted on patients with suspected PFO. Data were retrospectively analyzed from our previously established database. The prevalence of aneurysmal and redundant IAS and their relationship with age and PFO presence was evaluated.

RESULTS

Aneurysmal and isolated redundant IAS were present in 4% and 12.4% of the participants, respectively. The aneurysmal group was older, more frequently female and had higher frequency of PFO. The frequency of PFO among patients with aneurysmal IAS was about 14.4% and 5.3% in isolated redundant IAS patients. In both groups, the prevalence of abnormal IAS motion increased across age groups from the youngest to the oldest, while the prevalence of PFO decreased.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, the frequency of PFO among patients with aneurysmal IAS was about 2.5 times more than that among patients with isolated redundant IAS and 24 times more than the normal population. The increasing trend observed across the aging group proposes a potential role for age in the pathophysiology of abnormal IAS. Furthermore, the decreasing prevalence of PFO among patients underlies its clinical significance as an important risk factor.