Case Reports in Pediatrics
Volume 2017, Article ID 1858621, 6 pages
https://doi.org/10.1155/2017/1858621
Complete Ectopia Cordis: A Case Report and Literature Review
1Department of Paediatrics, University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, Maiduguri, Nigeria
2Department of Surgery, University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, Maiduguri, Nigeria
Correspondence should be addressed to Simon Pius; ku.oc.oohay@0002suipnomis
Received 27 December 2016; Revised 16 March 2017; Accepted 26 March 2017; Published 19 April 2017
Academic Editor: Junji Takaya
Copyright © 2017 Simon Pius et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
Ectopia cordis is a congenital heart exposure defined as complete or partial protrusion of heart through ventral defect in the thoracoabdominal wall alone or with other viscera in cases of pentalogy of Cantrell. This condition was first described by Haller et al. in 1706; since then many advances have been made. Diagnosis of ectopia cordis is done prenatally in well-equipped health facility by antenatal ultrasound scan so that early diagnosis and management plan can be initiated. The index case was delivered to uneducated rural family and admitted at 3 days of life and survived for seven days, even though most literatures state that majority died within four days even with surgery. So, in view of this, we presented this case report to deliberately draw the attention of paediatrician/obstetrician to the fact that even though this condition is rare, proactive search and diagnosis should be made and early treatment should be instituted, so that such a child may be salvaged.