Papillary Fibroelastoma

Excerpt

Primary cardiac tumors are rare entities, and the majority of these are benign. In adults, papillary fibroelastomas (PFEs) and cardiac myxomas are the most common types of primary cardiac tumors. Papillary fibroelastoma is a benign neoplasm. A single large series of 511 patients at Mayo Clinic by Tamin et al. reported PFEs as the most common cardiac tumor . Increasing utilization of advanced imaging techniques such as transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) has led to more frequent identification of intracardiac tumors. The first reported case of PFE was in 1975 as an embolic complication of PFE, leading to myocardial infarction. Since then, papillary fibroelastomas have been identified as a possible etiology of vascular embolism, stroke, and cardiac arrest. Much controversy still exists in the surgical versus medical management of these “benign” tumors, as they are known to lead to downstream embolic complications. This activity will focus on providing the latest literature update on PFEs.