Malignant hyperthermia in a black adolescent. A case report.

Malignant hyperthermia is a rare genetic abnormality which presents in the peri-anaesthetic period with tachycardia, hyperventilation, hyperthermia and acidosis. Untreated, the mortality rate is in excess of 80%. This syndrome is much less common in blacks than whites. A case of malignant hyperthermia in a black South African, in whom the reaction only became evident in the postoperative period, is reported. The case also presents several other unusual features.