Double orifice mitral valve and spontaneous echo contrast in the descending aorta

Abstract

Double orifice mitral valve (DOMV) is a rare congenital anomaly of the subvalvar mitral valve apparatus (chordae tendinae and papillary muscles) consisting of an accessory bridge of fibrous tissue, which partially or completely divides the mitral valve into two orifices (1). Spontaneous echo contrast (SEC) in aorta is more commonly seen in patients with severely reduced cardiac output, in the vicinity of dilated or aneurysmal aortas or within the false lumen created by aortic dissection. However, it has also been noted in the absence of structural heart disease and in the presence of normal aortic dimensions (2). To the best of our knowledge the presence of these two conditions together in the same patient has not been reported in the literature. In this report, we describe an 80-year-old male patient with DOMV, SEC in the descending aorta lumen without aortic dissection which were diagnosed by transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography.