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Chest pain in a 12-year-old boy: when is it a harbinger of poor outcome?

Hisham Alomran1, Faisal Alghamdi, Fadiah Alkhattabi

  • 1King Faisal Specialist Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. hisham_omran@hotmail.com

International Journal of Emergency Medicine
|February 17, 2010
PubMed

Insights

Chest pain in children is typically benign. However, a case of hyper-eosinophilic syndrome (HES) presented with sudden chest pain, leading to a fatal outcome, highlighting rare cardiac emergencies.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Emergency Medicine
  • Cardiology
  • Hematology

Background:

  • Chest pain in children presenting to emergency departments (ED) is often benign and non-cardiac.
  • Cardiac causes of chest pain are less common in pediatric patients compared to adults.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To present a rare case of hyper-eosinophilic syndrome (HES) presenting with acute chest pain and fatal outcome in a child.
  • To discuss the emergency department (ED) approach to pediatric chest pain.
  • To review acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in children.

Main Methods:

  • Case report presentation.
  • Literature review of pediatric chest pain, HES, and AMI.

Main Results:

  • A child with known HES experienced sudden chest pain with a rapid, fatal course in the ED.
  • The case underscores the importance of considering rare underlying conditions in pediatric chest pain.

Conclusions:

  • While most pediatric chest pain is benign, critical conditions like HES can present acutely and fatally.
  • A thorough ED evaluation is crucial for children with chest pain, including consideration of rare cardiac and systemic diseases.

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