Vasospastic angina in a 13-year-old female patient whose only symptom was toothache.
Vasospastic angina was confirmed in a 13-year-old female patient at autopsy. The patient's only symptom was recurrent toothache, which began when she was 10 years old. In November 2000, she was evaluated at our medical center; however, all examinations were judged normal. Six months later, she suffered a severe toothache. She went to school the next morning after the symptoms improved. She lost consciousness at school and was given cardiopulmonary resuscitation but could not be revived. At autopsy, her three coronary vessels showed marked intimal hyperplasia, and multiple focal myocardial infarctions were observed in the lateral wall of the left ventricle. The patient's only clinical symptom was toothache and none of the physicians realized that this was caused by angina. Vasospastic angina begins at a young age and is one of the causes of sudden death in adolescents.
Okajima
Yoshitomo
Y
Division of Cardiology, Chiba Children's Hospital, 579-1 Heta-cho, Midori-ku, Chiba City 266-0007, Japan. y.okajima@pref-hosp.togane.chiba.jp
Hirai
Aizan
A
Higashi
Morihiro
M
Harigaya
Kenichi
K
D000293:Adolescent; D000787:Angina Pectoris / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D003329:Coronary Vasospasm / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D003645:Death, Sudden / Q000473:pathology*; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D012307:Risk Factors; D014098:Toothache