H. Bouvaist et al., AN UNUSUAL SITE OF CARDIAC MYXOMA IN AN 1 1 YEAR-OLD CHILD, Archives des maladies du coeur et des vaisseaux, 90(5), 1997, pp. 729-733
Cardiac myxoma, a relatively common condition in adults, is exceptiona
lly rare in childhood. It is usually observed in the left atrium. The
condition may be latent and a chance echocardiographic finding or pres
ent with arrhythmias, intermittent mitral obstruction or embolic pheno
mena. The authors report the case of an 11-year old child with no prev
ious medical history, admitted to hospital after sudden right hemipleg
ia due to an ischaemic cerebrovascular accident. The investigation of
a cardiac embolic abnormality led to the finding of a very large left
ventricular tumour inserted into the mitral annulus and prolapsing int
o the left ventricular outflow tract, the histological examination of
which confirmed the diagnosis of myxoma. Cardiac myxomas in children s
eem to have a much more variable site of implantation than in adults,
especially in the right heart in infancy. Treatment is always surgical
. Echocardiography should be requested early in children presenting wi
th a murmur of recent origin, malaises, or unexplained inflammatory sy
ndromes, and would seem to be the only means of avoiding the severe em
bolic complications of these histologically benign tumours.