Key result
Fatal blunt left ventricular rupture occurs without external chest trauma following a physical altercation.
Why the study?
Blunt cardiac rupture can be fatal, and its occurrence in the left ventricle without external chest injury is particularly rare.
Case Report (n=1)
Highlights a rare case of fatal blunt cardiac rupture of the left ventricle without external chest injury following a physical altercation.
Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
Alerts clinicians to occult cardiac rupture after altercations; leaves open incidence and screening needs in trauma.
Cardiac rupture in blunt cardiac injuries, though uncommon, can be fatal. A particularly rare occurrence is blunt cardiac rupture of the left ventricle without external chest injury. Herein, we report a case of cardiac rupture without external chest injuries in a 21-year-old man who died after a physical altercation. The cause of death was attributed to cardiac rupture caused by blunt force. We analysed the differential diagnoses of cardiac rupture with intact pericardium, including cardiac diseases, blunt chest injury, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and Takotsubo cardiomyopathy. Additionally, we discussed the relevant factors for cardiac rupture in this case, including sudden enormous force, cardiac cycle, chest wall compliance, and alcohol consumption. Furthermore, we highlighted that no explicable cause other than cardiac rupture accounted for the death.
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Gao et al. (2025) conducted a case report in Blunt cardiac rupture of the left ventricle (n=1). Blunt cardiac rupture of the left ventricle without external chest injury was identified as the fatal cause of death in a 21-year-old man following a physical altercation.
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