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We describe our clinical experience of eight cases of secondary cardiac tumor. The pathology of the tumors were lymphoma (three), Wilms' tumor (two), malignant teratoma (one), neuroblastoma (one), and pleuropulmonary blastoma (one). Metastatic sites were the right atrium in Wilms' tumor and neuroblastoma, the left atrium in pleuropulmonary blastoma and malignant teratoma, and multiple sites in lymphoma. Primary masses in the mediastinum extended directly to the heart (three lymphoma, malignant teratoma, pleuropulmonary blastoma). Wilms' tumor and neuroblastoma showed cardiac metastases through the inferior vena cava. Many cases revealed vague abnormal cardiovascular findings (symptoms in six; physical signs in five). In five cases surgery was performed to relieve the possible obstruction to flow and to identify the pathology (lymphoma in three, Wilms' tumor in one, and malignant teratoma in one). Chemotherapy prior to operation resulted in the disappearance of the intracardiac masses in each case of Wilms' tumor and pleuropulmonary blastoma. All three patients with lymphoma died immediately after operation. Four died of multiple metastases or Pneumocystis pneumonia several months after operation. This study indicates that suspicion of a secondary cardiac tumor is crucial to early diagnosis. Because of the poor postoperative outcome, surgery for secondary cardiac tumors should be done cautiously only in cases with definite hemodynamic decompensation.

Radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA) has recently become a management option for pediatric tachycardia. We reviewed the records of a total of 100 patients (aged 10 months to 19 yr) who had undergone RFCA, from March 2000 to June 2004. Types of arrhythmia (age, acute success rate) were as follows: atrioventricular reentrant tachycardia (AVRT, 9.0±3.7 yr, 66/67), atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia (AVNRT, 13±2.5 yr, 16/16), ectopic atrial tachycardia (6.4±3.3 yr, 5/5), junctional ectopic tachycardia (10 month, 1/1), ventricular tachycardia (12±4.9 yr, 6/6), postsurgical intraatrial reentrant tachycardia (15.6±4.1 yr, 2/3), twin node tachycardia (4 yr, 0/1), and His bundle ablation (9 yr, 1/1). The age of AVNRT was older than that of AVRT (p=0.002). Associated cardiac disease was detected in 17 patients, including 6 univentricular patients, and 3 Ebstein's anomaly patients. RFCA for multiple accessory pathways required longer fluoroscopic times than did the single accessory pathway (53.9±4.8 vs. 36.2±24.1 min; p=0.03), and was associated with a higher recurrence rate (3/9 vs. 3/53; p=0.03). Regardless of the presence or absence of cardiac diseases, the overall acute success rate was 97% without major complications, the recurrence rate was 8.2%, and the final success rate was 97%. This experience confirmed the efficacy and safety of RFCA in the management of tachycardia in children.

It is difficult to make a definitive diagnosis of congenital junctional ectopic tachycardia (JET) in utero. We report a case in which congenial JET was suspected by fetal M-mode echocardiography. Fetal M-mode tracing of the atria and ventricle clearly showed a gradual acceleration of ventricular activity at the beginning of tachycardia, the warming-up sign of ectopic tachycardia, which was followed by simultaneous contractions of atrium and ventricle. This report also describes successful emergent radiofrequency catheter ablation of congenital JET in infancy with preservation of normal AV nodal conduction for this patient.

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