Perioperative management of emergency gastrointestinal surgery in a patient with left ventricular non-compaction

Left ventricular non-compaction (LVNC) is a rare congenital cardiomyopathy characterized by heart failure, arrhythmia, and embolic events. A 65-year-old man, previously diagnosed as LVNC, was admitted to the emergency department with severe abdominal pain. He was diagnosed as appendicitis and treated conservatively with antibiotics. The echocardiogram examination showed left ventricular ejection fraction of less than 25%, and his B-type natriuretic peptide assay was>5,000 pg · ml^-1 on admission. Ten days after admission, he underwent emergency surgery for suspected perforation of vermiform appendix. Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) was used for realtime evaluation of cardiac function and restrictive fluid management during surgery. He was transferred to intensive care unit (ICU) for postoperative care, and extubated 16 hours after surgery. On the third postoperative day, he was discharged from ICU without any complications. We consider that perioperative hemodynamic management with TEE may be useful for gastrointestinal tract surgeries in patients with severe cardiac disease, such as LVNC.