Hypocalcemic cardiomyopathy presenting as cardiogenic shock

Abstract

Hypocalcemia is a less known but treatable cause for dilated cardiomyopathy, leading to severe heart failure in children. Cardiogenic shock related to hypocalcemic cardiomyopathy is a rare event. We describe 5 infants presenting with cardiogenic shock over 3 years, who were found to have severe hypocalcemia as a sole cause of myocardial dysfunction. The patients responded to calcium and vitamin D supplementation promptly and left ventricular systolic function normalized within months of treatment. In any case of cardiogenic shock, hypocalcemia should be included in the differential diagnosis and must be investigated.

Keywords

• Calcium supplementation
• cardiogenic shock
• dilated cardiomyopathy
• hypocalcaemia