Transesophageal echocardiographic findings of papillary muscle rupture

Abstract Rupture of a papillary muscle is a rare complication of myocardial infarction or trauma. 1 Echocardiographic information is very useful in the diagnosis of ruptured papillary muscle, and for evaluation of left ventricular function and the degree of mitral regurgitation. A ruptured papillary muscle is not always visualized clearly by transthoracic echocardiography, but may be demonstrated more accurately by transesophageal echocardiography. We studied 2 patients with ruptured papillary muscle, 1 caused by traffic trauma and the other by acute myocardial infarction. The transesophageal echocardiographic findings of these patients are described.