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Atrial Myxomas:
- Rare primary heart tumor
- Most involve the left side of the heart
- Symptoms may include fatigue, fever, rash, chest pain, syncope, and/or focal neuro deficits
- Symptomatic emboli occur in 20-45% of pts with atrial myxomas
- >50% of emboli go to the brain
- Hemiplegia, aphasia, retinal artery occlusion, embolic “rash” in a child should all raise concern for cardiac source in pediatric pt.
- Embolus from the heart is the most common cause of retinal artery occlusion in pts <40yrs.
- Emboli are most often myxoma tissue and not blood clot (so thrombolytics aren’t of much value)
Majeed Al-Mateen, et al. Cerebral Embolism From Atrial Myxoma in Pediatric Patients. Pediatrics, Aug 2003; 112: e162 - e167.