Background: Cardiovascular disorders associated with neural crest tumors are congenital malformations rather than cardiomyopathies.
Case report: A 18 month-old girl developed heart failure one week after discovery of an adrenal neuroblastoma with excessive secretion of catecholamines. Investigation showed dilated cardiomyopathy without myocardial hypertrophy. Besides chemotherapy, the patient was given nitrous derivatives, diuretics and converting enzyme inhibitor. His cardiac condition gradually improved so that partial resection of the tumor was possible 2 years later.
Conclusions: The cardiomyopathy presented by this patient is possibly catecholamine-induced even though catecholamines usually results in myocardial hypertrophy rather than dilated cardiomyopathy. The reason why such a cardiomyopathy has never been reported in patients with neuroblastoma remains unclear.