Paroxistical supraventricular tachycardia in infants. A case report

Paroxistical supraventricular tachycardia is the most frequent arrhythmia in Pediatrics and it is a medical emergency. It happens in 0.1-0.4% of the pediatric population, mostly as an accidental finding or palpitations, it is well tolerated and sometimes with a spontaneous resolution.

Nevertheless, it frequently requires admission preferably in an intensive care unit (UCI), since it can be followed by malignant arrhythmias, cardiac insufficiency and dilated myocardiopathy, especially in infants. The evolution to death goes from 1% in patients with cardiopathy to 0,25% in patients without cardiopathy.

The treatment based on vagal stimulation manoeuvres and Adenosine (ATP) is usually successful, although recently has been communicated the low effectiveness of low doses of ATP (50-100 Ìg/kg), making necessary a review of current protocols.

Occasionally, the first assistance is given at primary care centres, even at rural medical centres. So we think that it is basic that primary care doctors knew about this pathology and also that nurses must be trained in periferical venous access, especially if the patient cannot be moved to a reference centre in a brief time.

We wish to draw the attention to this condition and with the help of a clinical case to show the basics of its diagnosis and treatment, especially in infants. Key words: Supraventricular tachycardia, Adenosine, Pediatrics.