Foamy myocardial transformation in a child with a disturbed respiratory chain.

A female infant presented with signs of general muscle hypotonia and increasing hypertrophy of the heart muscle. There was a constant lactic acidosis worsened after glucose intake. Serum lactate levels were increased up to 6.7 mmol/l. Serum alanine levels reached maximum concentrations of 2,800 mumol/l. The patient died after sudden cardiac arrest at 22 months of age. Histology of the heart showed the pattern of foamy myocardial transformation with accumulation of mitochondria and an increased glycogen content. Biochemical analysis of the skeletal muscle and the heart demonstrated signs of a disturbed respiratory chain. The content of cytochrome aa3 protein was decreased in skeletal muscle and heart mitochondria. It is suggested that respiratory chain defects may be the cause of foamy myocardial transformation of the heart.