A Case of Sudden Death in Decameron IV.6: Aortic Dissection or Atrial Myxoma?. Issue 2 (8th July 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Toscano, Fabrizio; Spani, Giovanni; Papio, Michael; Rühli, Frank J.; Galassi, Francesco M.
• Is Part Of: Circulation research. Volume 119:Issue 2(2016)
• Publication Date: 2016-07-08
• Subjects: aortic dissection -- autopsy -- history of medicine -- myxoma -- sudden death; Cardiovascular system -- Periodicals; Blood -- Circulation -- Periodicals; Blood Circulation; Cardiovascular System; Vascular Diseases; Sang -- Circulation -- Périodiques; Appareil cardiovasculaire -- Périodiques; 612.1
• DOI: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.116.309113
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0009-7330

Abstract

Abstract : Giovanni Boccaccio's Decameron contains a novella that details the sudden death of a young man called Gabriotto, including a portrayal of the discomfort that the protagonist experienced and a rudimentary autopsy performed by local physicians. The intriguing description of symptoms and pathologies has made it possible to read a 7-century-old case through the modern clinical lens. Thanks to the medical and philological analysis of the text—despite the vast difference between modern and medieval medicine—2 hypothetical diagnoses have emerged: either an aortic dissection or an atrial myxoma.