Sudden death associated with group A streptococcal infection in an 8-year-old girl with undiagnosed hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
Author
Bragonier, R.
Oades, Patrick
Date
1998-11Journal
Postgraduate medical journalType
Case ReportPublisher
BMJRights
Archived with thanks to Postgraduate medical journalMetadata
Show full item recordAbstract
An 8-year-old girl died suddenly without prior symptoms. Post-mortem examination identified both systemic group A streptococcal infection and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. She had no history of cardiac symptoms and was not in a high-risk group for sudden death due to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. We believe the disseminated but asymptomatic group A streptococcal infection precipitated her early death from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Sudden unexpected death during systemic infection should be followed by post-mortem examination to look for evidence of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, as this diagnosis has genetic implications for other family members.