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Mitral valve plasty in an adult patient without a right superior vena cava

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Abstract

Persistent left superior vena cava without a right superior vena cava is an extremely rare condition. We report the case of a 65-year-old woman with this condition who underwent mitral valve plasty. During cardiac catheterization, the asymptomatic patient with mitral valve prolapse syndrome was found to have a persistent left superior vena cava without a right superior vena cava. During mitral valve plasty, cardiopulmonary bypass was established using bicaval drainage through the persistent left superior vena cava and the right atrium. A cannula was inserted into the persistent left superior vena cava to provide a large surgical field in the left atrium. We selected a technique that involved direct insertion of an L-shaped cannula into the persistent left superior vena cava and obtained a clear view of the surgical field. Proper assessment of the right superior vena cava is necessary when a persistent left superior vena cava is suspected.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Tokyo Women’s Medical University, Medical Center East, Nishiogu 2-1-10, Arakawa-Ku, Tokyo, 116-8567, Japan

    Sayaka Kubota, Kiyoharu Nakano, Kojiro Kodera, Ryota Asano, Go Kataoka & Wataru Tatsuishi

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  1. Sayaka Kubota
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  2. Kiyoharu Nakano
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  3. Kojiro Kodera
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  4. Ryota Asano
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  5. Go Kataoka
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  6. Wataru Tatsuishi
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Correspondence to Sayaka Kubota.

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Kubota, S., Nakano, K., Kodera, K. et al. Mitral valve plasty in an adult patient without a right superior vena cava. Gen Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 60, 569–571 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11748-012-0001-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11748-012-0001-y

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