Eitautė Jakutienė, Žaneta Drižienė
Abstract
Cardiac contusion is usually caused by blunt chest trauma and therefore is frequently suspected in patients involved in car or motorcycle accidents. The diagnosis of a myocardial contusion is difficult because of non-specific symptoms and the lack of an ideal test to detect myocardial damage. Cardiac contusion can cause life threatening arrhythmias and cardiac failure. Many diagnostic methods, such as ECG, biochemical cardiac markers, transthoracic and transoesophageal echocardiography, and radionuclide imaging studies, have been investigated to determine their use in predicting such complications. Differential diagnosis between comotio cordis and contusion cordis is explaned in this article. Recently, cardiac troponin I and T were found to be highly sensitive for myocardial injury. Diagnosis of a cardiac contusion and identification of patients at risk still remain a challenge for doctors.
Keyword(s): Cardiac contusion; comotio cordis; miocardial injury; blunt chest trauma
DOI: 10.5200/387
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