Noninvasive evaluation of right hemodynamics in carcinoid heart disease: A case report

J Clin Ultrasound. 2017 Jul 8;45(6):355-361. doi: 10.1002/jcu.22413. Epub 2016 Oct 18.

Abstract

We report the case of a 67-year-old woman with a carcinoid tumor of midgut origin who developed carcinoid heart disease and died because of bowel perforation. Echocardiography allowed the diagnosis, recognizing the typical abnormalities of tricuspid and pulmonary valve leaflets. The sonographic examination also evidenced peculiar alterations of the right heart hemodynamics: end-diastolic reversal of flow at the level of the pulmonary valve, reduced respiratory excursion without enlargement of the inferior vena cava, and biphasic hepatic venous flow without respiratory variation. Echocardiography allowed both the diagnosis and the accurate assessment of the hemodynamic consequences of the disease. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Ultrasound 45:355-361, 2017.

Keywords: echocardiography; heart failure; pulmonary regurgitation; right ventricular function; tricuspid regurgitation.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Carcinoid Heart Disease / complications
  • Carcinoid Heart Disease / diagnostic imaging*
  • Carcinoid Heart Disease / physiopathology*
  • Echocardiography*
  • Fatal Outcome
  • Female
  • Hemodynamics / physiology*
  • Humans
  • Intestinal Perforation / complications