Severe right ventricular outflow tract obstruction caused by an intracavitary cardiac neurilemoma: succesful surgical removal and postoperative diagnosis.

A 32-year-old woman with a one-year history of progressive shortness of breath and chest pain was found to have a grade 4/6 systolic murmur at the base of the heart and left sternal border. Right ventricular enlargement was found by physical examination, ECG, and chest roentgenogram. Cardiac catheterization showed elevated right ventricular pressure, an intracavitary pressure gradient, and inability to enter the pulmonary artery. Angiography revealed a mass in the right ventricular outflow tract. Successful surgical removal of a large, well-encapsulated tumor mass was accomplished, and the tumor was interpreted as a benign neurilemoma. Postoperatively, the patient improved remarkably.