A congenital diverticulum of the left ventricular apex manifested by stroke and recurrent ventricular tachycardia

Abstract

Ventricular outpouchings include acquired abnormalities (aneurysms and pseudoaneurysms) and congenital ventricular diverticula (CVD). CVD represent rare cardiac pathologies. Although CVD is often associated with other cardiac and extracardiac congenital anomalies, it can also be incidentally observed in otherwise healthy subjects. CVD may lead to significant morbidity and even have lethal consequences. We describe a case of arrhythmogenic left ventricle (LV) apical CVD revealed by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI) after being initially overlooked by echocardiography. The paper includes the review of the literature also. This clinical case highlights the possible association of this pathology with recurrent ventricular tachycardia and stroke, and illustrates the importance of multimodal imaging approach in differential diagnosis.

Keywords: Congenital heart disease; Diverticulum; Left ventricle; Ventricular tachycardia.