A friend just phoned me up and said "My adopted son's sister has a smaller than usual sized heart".

This woman is 32, has 3 children, is very thin, and has s smaller than normal heart. She was told to not eat sweets and to keep thin.

There is a language problem here, so that's all the information I have and so far, that's all the information my friend has.

I tried and google "smaller than usual sized hearts", and "I have a small heart", but I only found one article about a man and the doctor responding to his question only said "It's not that abnormal to have a smaller than usual heart".

I also found the following on a medical website:

"The sudden decrease in cardiac size could not be attributed to a decrease in intravascular volume or to changes in positive airway pressure. Following surgical relief of tension pneumopericardium, the cardiac size was restored to baseline dimensions and the hemodynamic effects of tamponade resolved"

Thanks to anyone who can make heads or tails out of this. I did ask if there was any more information than what I gave in this post, but that's all the person knew.

32 year old woman, has 3 kids, has a small heart, told to not eat sweets and to stay thin.

That's ALL I know for now.

Melody

Small people have smaller hearts.

The quote you give means that:

There is a membrane around the heart called the pericardial membrane. If fluid builds up or air in that space it constricts the heart and prevents it from pumping properly. This can kill you if not fixed.

I doubt this is the woman's problem, unless she is suddenly very ill -- the heart thing in the quote is an acute situation, not a daily occurance.

If your friend was normal before and NOW has a smaller heart, that requires a doctor ASAP.

People with language issues, or from other countries, often use simple vernacular to explain things...so it might appear to be "small" but in fact the medical term might be "not enlarged".
She would use English simply and say "small".

Thanks so much for the quick response. I'll be sure to pass this along.

Take care,
melody