Use of Inoue balloon dilatation method for treatment of Cor triatriatum stenosis in a child.

An 8-year-old girl was referred for evaluation of a heart murmur and progressive dyspnea with exertion. Transthoracic echocardiogram revealed Cor triatriatum with severe stenosis at its orifice. The resting transmembrane CW Doppler velocity was 2.3 m/sec. Cardiac catheterization and hemodynamic assessment were performed and demonstrated a marked increase in pulmonary capillary wedge and pulmonary artery pressures. The stenosis was successfully dilated with an Inoue balloon using a transseptal technique. This is the first description of dilation of a Cor triatriatum using the Inoue technique. Only one previous case report of balloon dilatation for Cor triatriatum sinister has appeared in the English literature using a different technique (double balloon method). Copyright 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.