The authors present a review on the frequency and causes of cardiogenic systemic embolism and on the influence of damage of the central nervous system on the heart muscle. 10-20% of ischaemic cerebrovascular attacks are of cardioembolic origin. In patients with chronic atrial fibrillation the risk of a cerebrovascular attack is six times higher than in the corresponding population with a sinus rhythm. Views on the preventive administration of anticoagulants differ so far. In extensive myocardial infarctions of the anterior wall thrombi in the left ventricle are present in 30-40%. Thrombolytic treatment affects their formation; so far it is not clear whether it reduces the risk of embolization. With technical advances in echocardiography, and in particular transoesophageal echocardiography, attention is focused on abnormal findings in patients with cerebrovascular attacks without manifest heart disease. Most frequently in these patients a prolapse of the mitral valve is found, a foramen ovale patents, an aneurysm of the atrial septum, sometimes thrombi in the left auricula atrialis of an otherwise quite normal heart. A rare finding are cardiac tumours, systemic embolism being frequently their first clinical manifestation. An indicator of high risk of thromboembolism is probably a spontaneous echo contrast in the left atrium, detected reliably only from an oesophageal approach. In the second part the authors summarize contemporary knowledge on the effect of damage of the central nervous system on cardiac action. Cerebral injury or haemorrhage accompany kinetic disorders of the left ventricle of varying impact. Myocardial damage is caused by a high catecholamine level and can be prevented by administration of beta blockers.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Keywords: Echocardiography; Heart Diseases /complications/; Humans; Intracranial Embolism and Thrombosis /complications/