Surgical repair of a giant congenital right atrial aneurysm: a case report

Giant congenital right atrial aneurysms are rare defects of the heart. Though usually asymptomatic, they can be potentially life-threatening. Major risks include heart failure, supraventricular arrhythmias, rupture of the wall of the aneurysm. This defect is usually diagnosed incidentally. It is commonly found when transthoracic echocardiography or chest X-ray is performed. In some cases computed tomography or cardiac magnetic resonance imaging is needed to establish the diagnosis. Potential therapeutic options include surgery, catheter ablation and conservative follow-up. Currently preferred method for correcting this defect is surgical excision of the aneurysm, when surgical indications are met. In this article we describe a successful aneurysmectomy performed on a 16-month old female infant, who at the time of hospitalization presented with severe heart failure and symptoms of cardiac tamponade.