Idiopathic dilatation of the pulmonary artery

Idiopathic dilatation of the pulmonary artery. A case presentation

Idiopathic dilatation of the pulmonary artery is an uncommon, but not rare, congenital anomaly that is diagnosed by exclusion and generally has a benign clinical course. A left hilar mass on the chest x-ray film is the major presentation. The authors present a case of idiopathic dilatation of the pulmonary artery with posttraumatic chest pain clinically. After serial examinations, idiopathic dilatation of the pulmonary artery was diagnosed. They discuss the phenomenon of transpulmonary valvular pressure gradient and noninvasive tools for long-term follow-up, including transesophageal echocardiography and magnetic resonance imaging.

Pulmonary artery dissection in a patient with idiopathic dilatation of the pulmonary artery: a rare cause of sudden cardiac death

A 31 year old man presented with a left hilar mass. Thoracic tomography showed this mass to be the pulmonary artery, and subsequently idiopathic dilatation of the pulmonary artery was diagnosed. He remained well until 11 years later when he died suddenly. Postmortem examination confirmed idiopathic dilatation of the pulmonary artery with death due to pulmonary artery dissection and cardiac tamponade. It seems likely that idiopathic dilatation of the pulmonary artery predisposed to fatal pulmonary artery dissection.