Key result
Resection of AV node cystic tumour prevents 1-year recurrence but causes pacemaker-dependent complete heart block.
Why the study?
Cystic tumours of the atrioventricular node are exceptionally uncommon congenital cardiac tumours associated with conduction abnormalities and malignant arrhythmias, with limited antemortem diagnosis and treatment data.
Case Report (n=1)
Multimodal imaging is essential for characterizing rare cystic tumours of the atrioventricular node, which can be managed with early surgical resection to prevent sudden death despite the high risk of post-operative heart block.
Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
Resection prevented 1-year recurrence but induced complete heart block requiring pacemaker; leaves open management of rare cystic AV node tumours.
Background: Cystic tumours of the AV node (CTAVN) are exceptionally uncommon congenital cardiac tuours, with an incidence of 0.0017-0.03%. Case summary: A 47-year-old woman with recurrent symptomatic tachycardia underwent an ablation. Coronary sinus was noted to be enlarged. Subsequent cardiac CT revelead a well-circumscribed cystic lesioni in the Triangle of Koch, suspicious of a CTAVN. Multimodal imaging, including echocardiography, coronary angiography and cardiac MRI confirmed a non-vascular, encapsulated lesion with imaging characteristics consistent with a benign cystic mass. Given the risk of sudden cardiac death, surgical resection was performed. Histopathology confirmed CTAVN. The postoperative course as complicated by complete heart block requiring pacemaker implantation, with no recurrence at one year. Discussion: CTAVN is a rare but clinically significant benign tumour associated with conduction abnormalities and malignant arrhythmias. This care highlights the importance of multimodal imaging in diagnosis and the role of early surgical intervention to mitigate life-threatening complications.
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Yao et al. (2026) conducted a case report in Cystic tumour of the atrioventricular node (CTAVN) (n=1). Surgical resection was evaluated on Tumour recurrence and clinical status at 1 year follow-up. Surgical resection of the atrioventricular node cystic tumour prevented recurrence at 1 year but was complicated by complete heart block requiring a permanent pacemaker.
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