Sudden death of a young female patient. A case of arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia

Abstract

Arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia ARVD is a disorder which is characterized by replacement of right ventricular myocardium by fat and fibrous tissue. Although it generally causes arrhythmias originating from the right ventricle, sudden deaths might be seen. A 30-year-old woman with no previous symptoms of a particular disorder was found dead in her house. The organs of her body were sent to the pathology department after the autopsy was carried out by the Department of Forensic Medicine of Adnan Menderes University, Aydin, Turkey. Grossly, the heart weight was within the normal limits. Nonetheless, it was detected that the right ventricle wall was thinned remarkably and had yellow color. In the microscopic examination, it was observed that myocardium was replaced mostly by fat and fibrous tissue. The other sections of heart were normal. This lesion was diagnosed as ARVD and suggested as the cause of death.