Original Article

Evaluation of the Etiology in Children with Chest Pain Who Admitted to Pediatric Cardiology Clinic

10.4274/jpr.47955

  • Hayrullah Alp
  • Esma Alp

Received Date: 29.01.2014 Accepted Date: 01.04.2014 J Pediatr Res 2014;1(2):80-83

Aim:

Chest pain is a common complaint in children and it is an important problem for families. It is important to diagnose the etiology of the chest pain in children to give the appropriate medical treatment and to determine the serious cardiac diseases. The objective of our study was to evaluate the etiology in children with chest pain who admitted to our pediatric cardiology clinic.

Materials and Methods:

A total of 496 patients with chest pain were included in the study. The medical history was evaluated and a detailed physical examination was performed in our clinic. Also, electrocardiography and echocardiography were evaluated in all cases.

Results:

The incidence of chest pain in children was 3.40% and it was more common in boys (54.47%). 18.58% of boys and 21.39% of girls were obese. In both genders, idiopathic (44.41% and 50.24%, respectively) and musculoskeletal factors (30.85% and 19.40%, respectively) were determined as the most common causes of chest pain. Cardiac reasons were determined as 3.73% in boys and 4.98% in girls, mitral valve prolapse was determined as the most common cause of cardiac chest pain (54.55% and 50%, respectively). The serum cardiac troponin level was normal in all children in whom this laboratory test was analyzed.

Conclusion:

Cardiac causes were extremely low in the etiology of chest pain in childhood. Also, obesity should be considered as an etiologic factor in children with chest pain. Determining the serum cardiac troponin levels provided no benefit in the evaluation of the cardiac etiology.

Keywords: Chest pain, child, adolescents, etiology, obesity, cardiac troponin

Full Text (Turkish)