A&A practice
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Anomalous drainage of a right-sided superior vena cava to the left atrium is a rare variant of systemic venous return anomalies. During the course of investigation for a heart murmur, an asymptomatic child was found to have a superior sinus venosus atrial septal defect with partial anomalous systemic and pulmonary venous drainage. Despite the right superior vena cava overriding the upper end of the atrial septum and draining into the left atrium, the child did not exhibit hypoxemia. Saline contrast transesophageal echocardiography suggested an explanation for the absence of hypoxemia.
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Split cord malformations are rare spinal dysraphisms in which 2 separate spinal cords are present. Despite its diagnosis in all age groups, split cord malformations are not well described. ⋯ Anesthesiologists may encounter patients with known or unknown split cord malformations without much information to guide clinical decision-making and procedural risks of neuraxial anesthesia. This is the first case to the authors' knowledge of utilizing a caudal epidural injection for pain management in a patient with a diagnosed split cord malformation.