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Chylous pericardial effusion with cardiac tamponade in a child treated with imatinib
Denis J Donovan1, Tamar Siskind1, Maria T Thanjan2
1Division of Pediatric Cardiology, Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital, New York, NY, USA.
Insights
Chylous pericardial effusion, a rare complication, occurred in a child treated with imatinib. This case highlights a potential side effect of imatinib therapy in pediatric patients.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Pediatric Oncology
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Chylous pericardial effusions are uncommon, typically seen post-thoracic or cardiac surgery.
- Imatinib is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor used in treating certain cancers and other conditions.
Observation:
- An 8-year-old girl with a history of benign giant cell granulomas developed a significant chylous pericardial effusion.
- This effusion occurred shortly after initiating imatinib therapy.
- The patient presented with cardiac tamponade.
Findings:
- The study reports a rare instance of imatinib-induced chylous pericardial effusion.
- This adverse event led to cardiac tamponade in a pediatric patient.
Implications:
- This case underscores the importance of monitoring for rare cardiovascular side effects during imatinib treatment in children.
- Further research may be needed to elucidate the mechanism of imatinib-induced effusions.
- Clinicians should consider imatinib as a potential cause of chylous pericardial effusion in pediatric patients with relevant medical histories.
Abstract:
Chylous pericardial effusions are extremely rare outside of thoracic and cardiac surgery patients. We report the case of an 8-year-old girl with history of recurrent benign giant cell granulomas who developed a large chylous pericardial effusion with cardiac tamponade soon after beginning therapy with imatinib. In this article, we discuss the presentation, diagnosis, and management and review the published literature of this rarely reported side effect of this medication.
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