Eighty cases of left atrial myxoma were operated upon between January 1980 and May 1994. The ages, the course of disease, symptoms, and signs were very variable among the patients in this series. Echocardiography gave the definitive diagnosis, providing confirmation in all cases. Early surgery is imperative once diagnosis is confirmed. In cases were the patient was in poor condition, treatment was deferred for up to 2 weeks in order to optimize the patient for the surgery.
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