Background Primary cardiac schwannoma in the left atrium and schwannomatosis are rare diseases. Case presentation We report the case of a 46-year-old asymptomatic man who had tumor resection for parapharyngeal schwannoma at another institute 1 year ago. He was presented to our hospital for further evaluation of an abnormal cardiac shadow that was found incidentally. Computed tomography and transesophageal echocardiography revealed a cardiac tumor originating from the posterior wall of the left atrium, an atrial septal defect, and two other mediastinal tumors. The cardiac mass was completely excised with normal margins of the surrounding atrial wall. The post-resection defect and atrial septal defect were repaired using bovine pericardium. Pathological findings were compatible with benign schwannoma, and a diagnosis of schwannomatosis was made based on his medical history. Conclusion Primary cardiac schwannoma is an exceedingly rare tumor, and the incidence in schwannomatosis has not been reported in the literature.

A 68-year-old woman with a chief complaint of dyspnea was admitted in March, 2007. She had undergone percutaneous angioplasty of the right coronary artery in 2002. Elective surgery was advised because echocardiography, left ventricular cineangiography and 64-multidetector-row CT (64MDCT) had revealed a left ventricular aneurysm (LVA), a ventricular septal perforation (VSP) through the aneurysm, and three diseased coronary arteries. The aneurysm wall was located on the inferior wall, and this was incised longitudinally. The VSP was directly sutured using 4-0 polypropylene, and the aneurysm was closed with large patches, and pledgetted mattress and running sutures. The postoperative course was uneventful, and the patient was discharged on the 13th postoperative day. It is rare for LVA and VSP to be diagnosed simultaneously, but the risk of pseudo-false aneurysm of the left ventricle is high because of free wall rupture and septal wall perforation, and therefore surgical repair is recommended.

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Vertebral osteomyelitis (VO) is a relatively rare, but lethal, complication of infective endocarditis (IE). We report two cases who had been given a diagnosis of IE during conservative therapy for VO. A 60-year-old and a 52-year-old men each suffered onset of severe back pain. Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated osteomyelitis in the lumbar spine. IE was revealed from congestive heart failure and persistent fever, as an unusual complication of V0. A series of echocardiograms demonstrated the progression of valvular lesions and vegetation, despite treatment with antibiotics. We therefore performed surgery. One underwent aortic and mitral valve replacement, and the other underwent aortic valve replacement.VU was treated with long-term antibiotics and good responses were achieved in both patients. The possibility of VU in the lumbar spine should be considered in patients with IE complaining of severe back pain. Appropriate antibiotic therapy over a prolonged period is recommended.

We report a rare case of primary cardiac undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma with invasion to the posterior mediastinum, for which partial resection of the tumor in the left atrium had already been carried out twice. After remission for about three years, recurrence in the atrial wall involving the mitral valve posterior leaflet required a third surgical resection following mitral valve replacement. Jpn. J. Cardiovasc. Surg. 44 : 217 220 2015 primary cardiac malignant tumor ; undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma ; invasion to mediastinum ; reoperation Undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma ; UPS