Inflammatory pseudotumor (myofibroblastic tumor) of the heart.

Inflammatory pseudotumor (IPT) (also known as inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor) is an uncommon spindle cell lesion that was initially recognized in the lung and is now known to occur in virtually every major organ of the body. Its precise biological nature and clinical characteristics are still relatively uncertain. We report the case of a 7-month-old girl who was found to have an IPT of the right atrium. The rarity of IPT in the heart poses a diagnostic difficulty for both pediatricians and pathologists because of the clinical and morphologic overlap with other intracardiac masses in children. The differential diagnostic aspects of IPT of the heart are discussed and the literature on that lesion is reviewed. Copyright 2002, Elsevier Science (USA). All rights reserved.