Surgical Repair of a False Aneurysm of the Left Ventricle Resulting from a Separation Between the Aorta and the Heart

In the case of at 44-year-old Negro man with lupus erythematosus reported, a rapidly expanding mass had developed in the region of the left ventricle. Surgical exploration revealed a false aneurysm arising from a defect at the base of the heart. The defect is interpreted as a separation of the aorta from the heart in the region of the left coronary cusp of the aortic valve. Surgical repair is outlined and illustrated. The relationship of this defect to annular subvalvular aneturysm occurring in African Negroes is discussed.