Acute Transient Diastolic Dysfunction Induced by 5-Fluorouracil Treatment: A Case Report

Cardiac toxicity of 5-fluorouracil has been described in several medical reports including arrhythmias, angina pectoris, and myocardial infarction. The monitorization of the cardiac changes only by means of clinical signs, ECG and blood pressure leads to underestimation of 5-fluorouracil related cardiotoxicity. We report a cancer patient receiving 5-fluorouracil treatment with echocardiographic findings of reversible diastolic dysfunction. Serial echocardiographic evaluation of mitral inflow velocity patterns demonstrated abnormal relaxation pattern at baseline changing to restrictive type diastolic dysfunction at 48 hours after treatment with no symptoms or ECG changes. On the 15th day, diastolic dysfunction parameters returned to pre-treatment values. (Türk Kardiyol Dern Arş 2004; 32: 262-265)