CTICasesMicrocardia in Anorexia Nervosa
Imaging findings
Chest radiograph and chest CT demonstrate a profoundly small heart (microcardia) relative to the chest cavity, alongside a complete absence of subcutaneous fat, severe wasting of paraspinal muscle, and shrunken supraclavicular fossa. Diffuse tree-in-bud opacities and focal consolidations are seen in the right lower lobe, indicative of necrotizing aspiration pneumonia.
Key takeaways
True microcardia can be seen in states of extreme starvation, dehydration, and Addison's disease. In severe anorexia nervosa, profound loss of body fat and muscle wasting (protein-calorie malnutrition) also affects cardiac muscle mass and circulating blood volume, resulting in a dramatically small heart that is prone to heart failure.
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