Abstract
Carcinoid heart disease (CHD) commonly occurs in association with primary gastrointestinal tract carcinoid tumors with hepatic metastases. Unlike primary gastrointestinal tract carcinoid tumors, primary ovarian carcinoid tumors may cause CHD without hepatic metastases, accounting for only 0.3 % of all carcinoid tumors. Only 37 cases of CHD from primary ovarian carcinoid tumors have been reported. We present a case of CHD in which tricuspid valve thickening and shortening led to reduced valve mobility with the resulting severe tricuspid regurgitation. Considering these characteristics of an abnormal tricuspid valve, we suspected CHD, but prosthetic valve replacement was performed without sufficient systemic examination before surgery. Two years after valve replacement, the patient underwent excision of a mass in the lower abdomen, which was diagnosed as an ovarian carcinoid tumor by histopathological examination. The patient has been observed for more than 3 years after tricuspid valve replacement. She has not experienced bioprosthetic valve leaflet degeneration or dysfunction, although it has been reported that bioprosthetic valves may degenerate in patients with carcinoid tumors. Sufficient systemic examinations should be performed to explore the cause of disease.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bernheim AM, Connolly HM, Hobday TJ, et al. Carcinoid heart disease. Prog Cardiovasc Dis. 2007;49:439–51.
Zuetenhorst JM, Bonfrer JM, Korse CM, et al. Carcinoid heart disease: the role of urinary 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid excretion and plasma levels of atrial natriuretic peptide, transforming growth factor-beta and fibroblast growth factor. Cancer. 2003;97:1609–15.
Chaowalit N, Connolly HM, Schaff HV, et al. Carcinoid heart disease associated with primary ovarian carcinoid tumor. Am J Cardiol. 2004;93:1314–5.
Oei SG, Kloosterman MD, Verhoeven AT. Primary ovarian carcinoid tumor in combination with carcinoid heart disease; a case report. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol. 1989;31:185–8.
Nallet O, Nahon S, Cormier B, et al. Isolated carcinoid tumor of the ovary disclosed by tricuspid insufficiency. Arch Mal Coeur Vaiss. 2003;96:144–8.
Brunaud L, Antunes L, Sebbag H, et al. Ovarian strumal carcinoid tumor responsible for carcinoid heart disease. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol. 2001;98:124–6.
Franko DM, Berger M. Carcinoid heart disease in association with a primary ovarian carcinoid tumor: diagnostic role of echocardiography. Echocardiography. 2000;17:571–4.
Wilkowske MA, Hartmann LC, Mullany CJ, et al. Progressive carcinoid heart disease after resection of primary ovarian carcinoid. Cancer. 1994;73:1889–91.
Castillo JG, Filsoufi F, Rahmanian PB, et al. Adams DH. Early bioprosthetic valve deterioration after carcinoid plaque deposition. Ann Thorac Surg. 2009;87:321.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.
Ethical standard
Human rights statement and informed consent: This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
About this article
Cite this article
Tsugu, T., Iwanaga, S., Murata, M. et al. Bioprosthetic tricuspid valve replacement in carcinoid heart disease from primary ovarian carcinoid tumor. J Med Ultrasonics 42, 401–403 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10396-015-0621-9
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10396-015-0621-9