A 37-year-old man who fell from a truck had chest pain and we diagnosed blunt chest trauma. A chest computed-tomography displayed a traumatic cardiac tamponade. The patient was transported to our hospital for emergency surgery. After median sternotomy, there was no injury of heart and great vessels in the pericardial sac but a rupture of the pericardium. Bleeding and hematoma were found in the anterior mediastinal space. The cardiac tamponade was caused by the bleeding from anterior mediastinal space. Usually, blunt cardiac tamponade was caused by the bleeding from cardiovascular organs, however, we encountered a very rare cardiac tamponade due to the bleeding from the anterior mediastinal space.

Infectious endocarditis associated with Streptococcus bovis, which is rare in Japan, is a frequently reported complication of gastrointestinal tumors, especially in colon cancer. We report a patient who was successfully treated for the S. bovis-induced infectious endocarditis complication in colon cancer. A 60-year-old man was admitted to our hospital for detailed examination of high fever of unknown origin, that had lasted for 2 months. S. bovis was identified in the venous blood culture. An echocardiogram showed severe aortic valve regurgitation of the third degree and vegetation on the aortic valve. We therefore diagnosed infectious endocarditis. Colonoscopy revealed sigmoid colon cancer. After endoscopic mucosal resection of the lesion, the aortic valve was replaced. The postoperative course was uneventful and he was discharged from the hospital 36 days post operatively.

Infectious endocarditis associated with Streptococcus bovis, which is rare in Japan, is a frequently reported complication of gastrointestinal tumors, especially in colon cancer. We report a patient who was successfully treated for the S. bovis-induced infectious endocarditis complication in colon cancer. A 60-year-old man was admitted to our hospital for detailed examination of high fever of unknown origin, that had lasted for 2 months. S. bovis was identified in the venous blood culture. An echocardiogram showed severe aortic valve regurgitation of the third degree and vegetation on the aortic valve. We therefore diagnosed infectious endocarditis. Colonoscopy revealed sigmoid colon cancer. After endoscopic mucosal resection of the lesion, the aortic valve was replaced. The postoperative course was uneventful and he was discharged from the hospital 36 days post operatively.

We report a case of tricuspid infective endocarditis with peripheral pulmonary artery aneurysm. A 31-year-old man with a history of intravenous drug abuse was admitted to our institution. Echocardiography showed severe tricuspid valve insufficiency and large vegetation (10 mm) attached to the tricuspid valve. Computed tomography (CT) revealed a right peripheral pulmonary artery aneurysm. We operated because of the large amount of vegetation. Before the operation, we performed coil embolization for peripheral pulmonary aneurysm. During the operation, we removed the posterior leaflet with vegetation, and performed tricuspid valve repair. The postoperative course was uneventful. Postoperative echocardiography did not show any tricuspid valve insufficiency or vegetation.

We describe a case of an intracardiac foreign body that was treated by surgery. A 27-year-old man sustained a neck injury by a nail fired from a pneumatic nail gun, and was admitted to a hospital. Chest radiography did not show any abnormality, and his injury healed after 1week. A radiography performed during a routine medical checkup after 2 months indicated that a nail was located within the heart. He was subsequently admitted to our hospital for further examinations. Chest computed tomography (CT) revealed the presence of a nail-like foreign body in the right ventricle. We diagnosed the patient with an intracardiac foreign body that was related to the injury sustained 2 months previously, although the underlying mechanism was unknown. He underwent emergency surgery, and the foreign body was removed under cardiopulmonary bypass without any complications. When a rigid substance impacts the body at high speeds, we should consider that some fragments could remain embedded in the body. CT scans are very useful for the diagnosis and identification of foreign bodies.