Association between Atrial Septal Aneurysm and Mitral Valve Prolapse in Patients with Recent Stroke and Normal Carotid Arteries

Background. The association between mitral valve prolapse (MVP) and cryptogenic stroke is controversial. The Atrial Septal Aneurysm Multicenter Italian Study is a prospective multicenter study evaluating the prevalence of atrial septal aneurysm (ASA) in patients with a recent stroke and normal carotid arteries. The aim of the present research was to evaluate the frequency of ASA and its association with MVP in the stroke population and in the subgroup of young patients (less than 55 years) included in the ASMI Study.Methods. The study group included 245 of the 606 patients referred for transesophageal echocardiography (168 men and 77 women, mean age 65.7 21 years). All patients were selected on the basis of a recent episode of unexplained cerebral ischemia and were included in the study if they had normal carotid arteries. The control population included 245 patients (mean age 64.7 23 years) who underwent transesophageal echocardiographic evaluation during the same period for indications other than cerebral ischemia. The subgroup of young patients (55 years) included 90 patients (61 men and 29 women.