Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings - Diagnosis of congenital unicuspid aortic valve by 64-slice cardiac computed tomography
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A 28-year-old man presented to our hospital with 3 days of intermittent, escalating dyspnea and chest tightness. He reported that he often experienced dyspnea when smoking, chewing tobacco, or exerting himself beyond the level of normal daily activity. His discomfort was partially relieved by his albuterol inhaler, which he used [greater than or equal to] 10 times per day. As a child, he was told that he had a precordial murmur, but he had not sought medical attention. Five years prior to this evaluation, he was having similar symptoms and was treated with antibiotics. He was told at that time that he had mild asthma.
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On examination, the patient was mildly dyspneic, with a harsh systolic murmur at the right upper sternal border. Transthoracic echocardiogram revealed left ventricular thickening with normal systolic and diastolic function and a left ventricular ejection fraction of 65%. A peak gradient of >4 meters per second was noted, with a calculated aortic valve area of
