Korean J Med.  2010 Jul;79(1):57-61.

A case of asymptomatic cardiac lipoma of the left ventricular posterior papillary muscle

• Baek YS
• Kwan J
• Lee KH
• Shin SH
• Park SD
• Jeong ES
• Min KS

Abstract

Primary cardiac lipoma is a rare, benign, well-encapsulated tumor that is typically composed of mature fat cells. It can occur in any part of the heart, but is mostly found incidentally. Although cardiac lipoma does not require specific treatment in most cases, physicians should pay attention to this entity, which may cause arrhythmias, embolization, compression of the coronary arteries, or obstruct blood flow within the heart. In this report, we present the case of a 70-year-old woman who was admitted with a complaint of infectious colitis and incidentally found to have a cardiac lipoma in the posterior papillary muscle of the left ventricle on the basis of two-dimensional echocardiography and cardiac MRI. Given the patient's lack of symptoms and normal cardiac function, we recommended observation without surgical exploration. After six months, the patient was in good health and showed no clinical signs or symptoms of cardiac lipoma.

Keyword

Cardiac tumor, Lipoma; Papillary muscle; Magnetic resonance imaging

MeSH Terms

Adipocytes
Aged
Arrhythmias, Cardiac
Colitis
Coronary Vessels
Echocardiography
Female
Heart
Heart Ventricles
Humans
Lipoma
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Papillary Muscles