Reduction plasty for giant left atrium causing dysphagia: a case report

The giant left atrium is described as an atrium with a diameter of 6.5 cm or larger and which can rarely cause dysphagia by compressing on the esophagus. Left atrial enlargement is usually seen due to mitral valve disease. The most common indication of left atrial volume reduction plasty during mitral valve surgery is the compression symptoms. We performed mitral valve replacement in our case and transformed the giant left atrium into an anatomical chamber with the technique we applied. In this way, we successfully eliminated cardiac and compression symptoms. Cardiac causes of dysphagia are rarely seen, usually, cardiac complaints are more prominent than dysphagia. However, it should be kept in mind in the differential diagnosis. We think that cardiac mortality and morbidity may be prevented with early diagnosis and treatment.