Favourable natural history of multiple obstructive rhabdomyomas in a newborn

Abstract

Rhabdomyomas are the most common cardiac tumours and are easily diagnosed by echocardiography. Heart failure and arrhythmias are two major complications of rhabdomyomas in foetal life and in newborns. We report the case of an apparently healthy male newborn with sporadic ventricular premature beats. The echocardiographic evaluation performed at birth showed multiple rhabdomyomas with a significant obstruction of the left and right ventricular outflow tracts. During the follow-up, we observed absence of neurological problems, no signs of heart failure, and normalization of the arrhythmic burden. Serial echocardiographic evaluation showed a reduction of the size and number of rhabdomyomas. The subsequent 14-year follow-up was completely uneventful. In conclusion, owing to the favourable natural history of rhabdomyomas, most patients can be managed conservatively.