A child was close to death while eating a hot dog

AlexLipa/epictura

Published the 07.09.2017 at 18h04

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genetic disease rarealimentation

This could make you feel like a hot dog. It is, in fact, eating this sandwich american that a young Turk presented a reaction to say the least, unusual. Was only 9 years old, he has been the victim of a syncope followed by a sudden cardiac arrest.

The day would have had to be good for the young boy whose story is the subject of this publication. A hot dog on the menu of the canteen has what inspires. But after a big bite of this festive meal, her condition has abruptly deteriorated. Supported quickly by the emergency, the child has survived.

For 30 minutes, the doctors of the hospital where he is transported, worked to revive the child. On this occasion, they noted, a ventricular fibrillation. His misfortune will at least permit him to diagnose a cardiac disorder rare : the Brugada syndrome.

A genetic mutation

It is only at the university hospital of Istanbul (Turkey) that words are put on this event with little current. The physicians who have supported summarize his career in Pediatrics. Cardiac arrest sudden are common in people with Brugada syndrome, they explain. Most often, these incidents are related to stimulation of the vagus nerve, usually during sleep.

This time, it is a big bite of hot dog that would be in question. The doctors have therefore recommended to the child to avoid flare-ups of fever, alcohol and drugs in the risks… as well as eating in small bits. These factors increases the risk of cardiac arrest. An automatic defibrillator was also implanted in the chest of the patient. It will jump-start the heart in case of a sudden stop.

A mutation located in the gene SCN5A, is at the origin of the pathology. But in the absence of symptoms, the spot is useless. Moreover, the examination of the relatives of the boy found there was no family history. Only his brother shows signs suggestive of such condition. He has received the same prevention tips.

Discovery in 1992

Last February, a young wife has made the cost of this disease is poorly known. Her husband died of a cardiac arrest after he was thrown from the bed because of snoring. The error is understandable : this syndrome is known since 1992 and the number of patients difficult to assess.

As explained in the platform Orphanet, a specialist in rare diseases, the age at the time of diagnosis is extremely variable. It goes from 2 to 84 years. And for cause : in the absence of sudden cardiac arrest, there is no sign of the disease. Electrocardiograms themselves are quite normal.

A few signs can alert, such as restlessness, loss of urine or of memory, or noisy breathing, intense and accompanied by a snoring. But he still must know.