Heparin treatment and resolution of left ventricular thrombosis

Abstract In a 70-year-old man admitted to our hospital because of repeated episodes of transient disorientation, an ECG showed a recent inferior myocardial infarction. A two-dimensional echocardiography detected hypo-akinesia in the apex region, where a hyperechogenic oval and pedunculated mass with a maximum diameter of 1.5 cm, attributable to an organized thrombus, was located. After 20 days of therapy with calcium-heparin at a dose of 12,500 IU every 8 h, a two-dimensional echocardiography showed the complete disappearance of the mass. This and other recent reports confirm the thrombolytic activity of the drug and the possibility of postponing the immediate surgical removal of intraventricular thrombi in favour of heparin treatment.