A Pediatric Case of Cardiac Myxoma Presenting as an Acute Stroke in the Emergency Department

ABSTRACT

Occurrence of primary cardiac tumors is rare in all age groups; occurrence is observed in 0.05% of routine postmortem examinations. A 15-year-old Korean female transported by 119 rescue presented with common clinical findings for acute stroke. Brain imaging included computed tomography; magnetic resonance imaging was performed in the emergency department. Findings on brain imaging were compatible with acute cerebral infarction of the territory of the right middle cerebral artery. The patient was treated with reperfusion therapy with IV tissue plasminogen activator and cerebral artery stenting. Echocardiography was performed in the emergency department in order to determine the cause of acute cerebral infarction. We experienced a case of pediatric cardiac myxoma presenting as an acute stroke in the emergency department, which was confirmed by imaging study and biopsy; therefore, we report on it here along with a review of the literature.