Doctor’s ‘weird’ find on teen’s X-ray

Claire Mack, 19, from Chicago, US, cut herself on some barbed wire and had to go to the hospital for a tetanus shot in June and thought she’d ask doctors about the persistent cough she had been experiencing.

She ended up having a chest X-ray, which revealed shocking results.

The teen was told she was suffering from a lung infection. But doctors also revealed something unusual about her heart.

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“[The doctor] told me, ‘OK this is a bit weird but did you know your heart is on the right side of your chest instead of the left?’”

“I was so confused and started laughing because I honestly didn’t believe it.

“The doctor explained it is called dextrocardia and that I should inform my primary care doctor of my condition.

“I kept saying, ‘What, are you serious?’ – I honestly was in shock and extremely confused as to how I didn’t know before I was 19 years old.”

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Dextrocardia is a rare condition which is present at birth, in which the heart is pointed towards the right side of the chest rather than the left.

Less than one per cent of the general population is born with the condition and Claire said her parents were also “in shock and extremely confused”.

“My dad was really freaked out by it and my mum thought it was hilarious that I didn’t find out until now,” she said.

“I hadn’t ever had a chest X-ray so there was no way to know that my heart was reversed.

“My primary care doctor did a check-up with me and said that my heart does beat louder on the right side – but obviously there’s no way you can diagnose dextrocardia from that alone.”

After her diagnosis Claire took to TikTok to share her experience and her post has now been viewed more than 2.9 million times and has received over 400,000 likes.

Many social media users questioned how doctors had missed the fact her heart was on the wrong side of her chest.

Dextrocardia is usually not life-threatening and Claire doesn’t need any medical follow-ups at present, but will simply go on living with her heart on the wrong side.