title: Sudden death due to biventricular non-compaction cardiomyopathy in a 14-year-old.
abstract: A 14-year-old African-American female with a long-standing medically and ablation-treated history of tachycardia with associated seizures died suddenly. Upon autopsy, evidence of gross non-compaction involving the left ventricle, as well as possible subtle non-compaction of the right ventricle was discovered. Microscopically, there was focal myocyte hypertrophy as well as myxoid connective tissue and subendocardial fibroelastosis in the areas affected by the non-compaction. Arrhythmia, precipitated by the underlying cardiomyopathy, led to this young girl's death. Non-compaction cardiomyopathy is a rare cardiac disorder which commonly goes undiagnosed until post-mortem, although diagnosis through echocardiogram, CT, or MRI is possible and there is criterion for diagnosis with each of these.
authors.affiliation: Indiana University School of Medicine-Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN, USA, pjcohen@iupui.edu.
authors.forename: Paul J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Cohen
authors.forename: Joseph A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Prahlow
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001344:Autopsy; D001706:Biopsy; D002423:Cause of Death; D016757:Death, Sudden, Cardiac / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology*; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005260:Female; D005355:Fibrosis; D006801:Humans; D056830:Isolated Noncompaction of the Ventricular Myocardium / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D009206:Myocardium / Q000473:pathology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D017180:Tachycardia, Ventricular / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology*