[Crista terminalis bridge mimicking right atrial mass; report of a case].

A 67-year-old female was operated upon because of transthoracic echocardiograms revealing a 13 x 8 mm mass in right atrium. However, there was no mass and was prominent crista terminalis (CT) instead. CT is the largest and strongest fibromuscular bundle in the right atrium, which separates primitive right atrium from the venous sinus.

Large organized thrombus of the tricuspid valve: report of a case.

We report the case of a 49-year-old woman with a large organized tricuspid valve thrombus in a structurally normal heart. Preoperative echocardiogram showed a large irregular-shaped mass, approximately 5 cm in diameter, moving from the right atrium into the right ventricle. The assumed preoperative diagnosis was cardiac metastasis of uterine sarcoma because she had undergone surgery for uterine sarcoma 15 years earlier.

Clinical results of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) support for acute respiratory failure: a comparison of a centrifugal pump ECMO with a roller pump ECMO.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare the clinical results of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) using a centrifugal pump (CP group) and that using a roller pump (RP group) for the treatment of acute respiratory failure (ARF).

Methods: From November 1990 to July 2001, the ECMO system was introduced for the treatment of 15 patients with ARF; 10 cases of pneumonia or adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), 4 cases of pulmonary hemorrhage, and 1 case of hypoxemia following cardiac surgery. Five patients were included in the RP group, and 10 were included in the CP group.