• Images in cardiology

The identification of cardiac mass is one of the most important uses of two dimensional transthoracic and transoesophageal echocardiography. However, not all echogenic structures in the heart are pathologic. Erroneous diagnosis can lead to serious mismanagement, and overlooking a potentially lethal condition can be disastrous. The transthoracic apical four chamber view below (left panel) illustrates one such situation. The transthoracic echocardiogram shows a mass in the right atrium simulating a right atrial tumour or a thrombus. This echocardiogram, however, was …