Rare Cardiac Emergencies: Aortic Dissection, Pulmonary Hypertensive Crisis, and Pulmonary Embolism

There are a few very rare pediatric cardiac problems not clearly related to the heart in which the cardiologist is usually called to make the diagnosis and help in management. Aortic dissection and pulmonary embolism are so rare in children that many providers have not encountered these problems. Pulmonary hypertension shares pathophysiology with pulmonary embolism, although emergency presentations are also extremely rare. In this review, we describe the presentation and latest practices in the evaluation, triage, and emergency department management strategies.