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Myocardial contusion - Treatment

Alternative Names

Blunt myocardial injury

Treatment:

Treatment is usually supportive. Patients are watched for 24 hours and continually monitored by ECG.

In the Emergency Department patients may receive:

Catheter placement through a vein (IV)
Medications for pain relief, heart rhythm disturbances, or low blood pressure
Pacemaker
Supplemental oxygen
Various therapies for injuries, such as chest tube placement, drainage of blood from the pericardial sac, or surgery to repair ruptured blood vessels in the chest

Expectations (prognosis):

Mild cases usually recover completely.

More serious injuries to the heart may result in damage to the heart muscles, putting the patient at risk for heart failure or heart rhythm disturbances.

Heart, section through the middle

Heart, front view

Reviewed last on: 4/13/2010
Jacob L. Heller, MD, MHA, Emergency Medicine, Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, Washington. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

References

Hamilton RS. Myocardial contusion. In: Rosen P, Barkin RM, Hayden Sr, Schaider JJ, Wolfe R, eds. Rosen and Barkin's 5-Minute Emergency Medicine Consult. 3rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2007.

Muscle cramps

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