title: Severe hypertension and cardiac failure associated with neuroblastoma: a case report.
abstract: The authors report on 3-year-old-girl with neuroblastoma complicated by severe hypertension and cardiac failure. She had cardiomegaly and pleural and pericardial effusions. Echocardiogram showed left ventricular hypertrophy and decrease of the left ventricular ejection fraction to 0.36 (normal > .40). Abdominal computed tomographic scan indicated a 7 x 7-cm tumor in the left suprarenal area. There was a marked increase in catecholamines and metabolites in her body fluids. After hypertension was controlled with doxazosin (a long-acting alpha 1 adrenergic blocker), her cardiac function gradually improved. A tumor was surgically removed and diagnosed as a poorly differentiated ganglioneuroblastoma. Preoperative differentiation between neuroblastoma and pheochromocytoma was not possible on the basis of catecholamine analysis or imaging studies including computed tomography scan and magnetic resonance imaging. It is important to control hypertension quickly in the patients with catecholamine-induced cardiomyopathy to facilitate surgical intervention for diagnosis and treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Yamagata University School of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sendo
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Katsuura
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Akiba
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yokoyama
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tanabe
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wakabayashi
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Otaki
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Obata
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Yamagiwa
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hayasaka
mesh_terms: D000317:Adrenergic alpha-Antagonists / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006332:Cardiomegaly / Q000209:etiology*; D002395:Catecholamines / Q000378:metabolism; D002675:Child, Preschool; D017292:Doxazosin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D018305:Ganglioneuroblastoma / Q000150:complications* / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology*; D007680:Kidney Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000601:surgery; D010490:Pericardial Effusion / Q000209:etiology; D010996:Pleural Effusion / Q000209:etiology
chemical_list: D000317:Adrenergic alpha-Antagonists; D002395:Catecholamines; D017292:Doxazosin