Valor de la angiografía coronaria por tomografía computarizadaen el diagnóstico de las anomalías coronarias / Role of coronary computed tomography angiography for the diagnosis of coronary anomalies

Background: Coronary anomalies are rare heart diseases that can cause sudden cardiac death, especially in young individuals. Coronary computed tomography angiography delivers a three-dimensional view of excellent quality with information of the origin, course and anatomic relationships of the anomalous vessel, allowing differentiation between benign and malignant variants, entities that require different management and treatment. Aim: To show that coronary computed tomography angiography is the non-invasive technique of choice for the evaluation of a coronary anomaly due to its high diagnostic accuracy. Material and Methods: Between 2008 and 2014, 368 coronary computed tomography angiographies were carried out. Six (1.6%) patients had a coronary anomaly. Results: The age of these six patients ranged from 38 to 82 years (five were women). The coronary computed tomography angiography was requested due to cardiac symptoms (angina and dyspnea) in two patients, after a selective coronary arteriography to obtain additional information of the coronary anomaly in three patients, and after a cardiorespiratory arrest in one patient. Three patients had an anomaly of the right coronary artery, two patients had an anomaly of the left coronary artery and one patient had absent left main coronary artery. In five patients the coronary anomaly was malignant. Conclusions: Coronary computed tomography angiography is a robust diagnostic method to evaluate patients with suspected coronary anomalies.

Anomalous origin of coronary artery: taxonomy and clinical implication / Origem anômala da artéria coronária: taxonomia e implicação clínica

Objective: Anomalous origin of coronary artery is uncommon. The taxonomies of anomalous origin of coronary artery are inconsistent and complex. Conceptual and therapeutic debates remain. The aim of the present study is to reappraise the concept of anomalous origin of coronary artery and to discuss the potential hazards and treatment rationale of this anomaly on basis of literature review. Methods: A comprehensive literature review was made in terms of the taxonomies including “simple”, “multiple” and “complex” types of anomalous origin of coronary artery. Results: Anomalous origin of coronary artery can be simply categorized according to the ectopically originated coronary artery. There are a couple of complex anatomical variants: “multiple” type, involving more than one coronary artery or branch, which can be subdivided into 2 subtypes, A) more than one coronary arteries or branches arising from one place; and B) two coronary arteries/branches arising from separate ectopic sites; and “complex” type, associated with acquired heart disease, or congenital heart defects. Conclusion: Sudden cardiac death in anomalous origin of coronary artery is associated with the anatomical features including abnormal coursing, acute angle take-off and ostial abnormalities. Atherosclerosis is prone to be in the right-sided ectopic and retroaortic coursing coronary artery. Surgical treatment is a definitive therapy. Simple coronary artery bypass grafting is not recommended due to the potential hazards of coronary steal phenomenon and poor patency of mammary arterial grafts, and modified maneuvers such as coronary ostial reimplantation, impinged coronary segment unroofing and coronary stent deployment are advocated instead. .

Objetivo: A origem anômala da artéria coronária é incomum. As taxonomias de origem anômala da artéria coronária são inconsistentes e complexas. Os debates conceituais e terapêuticos permanecem. O objetivo do presente estudo é reavaliar o conceito de origem anômala da artéria coronária e discutir os riscos potenciais e fundamentos para o tratamento desta anomalia, com base em revisão de literatura. Métodos: A revisão da literatura foi feita com termos das taxonomias, incluindo origem anômala da artéria coronária “simples”, “múltipla” e “complexa”. Resultados: A origem anômala da artéria coronária pode ser simplesmente classificada de acordo com a origem ectópica da artéria coronária. Há um par de variações anatômicas complexas: “múltipla”, envolvendo mais de uma artéria coronária ou ramo, que podem ser subdivididos em dois subtipos: A) mais de uma das artérias coronárias ou ramos decorrentes de um lugar; e B) duas artérias coronárias/ramos decorrentes de sítios ectópicos separados; e tipo “complexo”, associado à doença cardíaca adquirida ou defeitos cardíacos congênitos. Conclusão: A morte súbita cardíaca de origem anômala da artéria coronária está associada com as características anatômicas incluindo curso anormal, descolamento de ângulo agudo e anormalidades ostiais. A aterosclerose é propensa a ocorrer na artéria coronária ectópica e retroaórtica, do lado direito. O tratamento cirúrgico é uma terapia definitiva. Revascularização do miocárdio simples não é recomendada devido aos riscos potenciais do fenômeno de “roubo” do fluxo coronário e patência ruim dos enxertos com a artéria torácica interna. Manobras modificadas como reimplante ostial coronário, destelhamento do segmento coronário impingido e implantação de stent coronário são defendidas em seu lugar. .

Spontaneous coronary artery dissection and acute myocardial infarction after cesarean section in a postpartum woman with untreated dyslipidemia

Spontaneous coronary artery dissection [SCAD] is a rare cause of acute myocardial infarction [AMI]. We are presenting a case of a young woman with a history of untreated dyslipidemia presented with AMI secondary to left anterior descending coronary artery dissection during postpartum period. Physicians should be aware of this rare etiology of AMI which occurs during pregnancy and postpartum, since early diagnosis and treatment play a key role in saving both the mother and the baby. It is important to screen for other possible causes such as collagen vascular diseases, blunt injury to the chest, or cocaine abuse

Origem anômala da artéria coronária esquerda do seio de Valsalva direito / Anomalous origin of the left coronary artery from the right sinus of Valsalva

Trazemos neste artigo a descrição de uma peça anatômica especificamente preparada para demonstrar uma rara anomalia da origem da artéria coronária esquerda do seio de Valsalva direito, com incidência de 0,15% em pacientes submetidos a cinecoronariografia. Trata-se de um subgrupo de anomalias das artérias coronárias que tem o maior potencial para repercussões clínicas, em especial a morte súbita em jovens. Discutimos, à luz dos conhecimentos atuais, os mecanismos fisiopatológicos, o diagnóstico e as opções de tratamento das variações anatômicas da origem anômala da artéria coronária do seio contralateral.

This article reports an anatomic specimen specifically prepared to demonstrate a rare anomaly of the origin of the left coronary artery from the right sinus of Valsalva, with an incidence of 0.15% in patients undergoing coronary angiography. This is a subgroup of coronary artery anomalies with the greatest potential for clinical repercussions, especially sudden death in young patients. Based on current knowledge, pathophysiologic mechanisms, diagnosis and treatment options of anatomical variations of the anomalous origin of a coronary artery from the contralateral sinus are discussed.

Aneurisma gigante de tronco coronario izquierdo en un atleta de 26 años de edad: reporte de caso y revisión de la literatura / Giant left main coronary artery aneurysm in 26-year-old athlete: case report and review

El desarrollo de aneurismas en el tronco coronario izquierdo es una patología rara con una incidencia de 0,1% y cuya etiología puede ser congénita o adquirida. La importancia clínica de los aneurismas coronarios estriba en el riesgo de ruptura coronaria espontánea y de infarto de miocardio por trombosis, embolismo o espasmo. Este reporte describe el caso de un paciente de 26 años de edad, estudiante de licenciatura en educación física, con un aneurisma gigante sacular del tronco coronario izquierdo asociado con estenosis suboclusiva posaneurismática que condicionó la presencia de manifestaciones de isquemia miocárdica de alto riesgo. Presentamos la imaginología y una revisión sobre la etiología, los aspectos clínicos, diagnósticos y terapéuticos de los aneurismas del tronco coronario izquierdo.

The development of the left main coronary artery aneurysms is a rare pathologic process with an incidence of 0.1% and whose etiology can be either congenital or acquired. The clinical importance of the aneurysms of the left main coronary artery is based in the potential risk of spontaneous dissection and rupture and myocardial infarction for thrombosis, embolism or spasm. We report the case of a 26-year-old athlete with agiant aneurysm of the left main coronary artery associated with suboclusive stenosis and clinical manifestations of myocardiali schemia. We present the imagenological characteristics and bibliographic review about the clinical, diagnostic and therapeutic aspects of the left main coronary artery aneurysm.

Origins of the coronary arteries and their significance

Objective: To describe the normal and variant anatomy of the coronary artery ostia in Indian subjects. Introduction: Anomalous coronary origins may cause potentially dangerous symptoms, and even sudden death during strenuous activity. A cadaveric study in an unsuspected population provides a basis for understanding the normal variants, which may facilitate determination of the prevalence of anomalies and evaluation of the value of screening for such anomalies. Methods: One hundred and five heart specimens were dissected. The number of ostia and their positions within the respective sinuses were observed. Vertical and circumferential deviations of the ostia were observed. The heights of the cusps and the ostia from the bottom of the sinus were measured. Results: No openings were present in the pulmonary artery or the non-coronary sinus. The number of openings in the aortic sinuses varied from 2-5 in the present series; multiple ostia were mostly seen in the anterior sinus. The majority of the ostia lay below the sinutubular ridge (89 percent) and at or above the level of the upper margin of the cusps (84 percent). Left ostial openings were mainly centrally located (80 percent), whereas the right coronary ostia were often shifted towards the right posterior aortic sinus (59 percent). Discussion: The preferential location of the ostia was within the sinus and above the cusps, but below the sinutubular ridge. On occasion, normal variants like multiple ostia, vertical or circumferential shift in the position, and slit-like ostia may create confusion in interpreting the images and pose a difficulty during procedures like angiography, angioplasty, and coronary artery bypass grafting.

Pulmonary Sequestration with Right Coronary Artery Supply

Pulmonary sequestration is an unusual malformation consisting of isolated nonfunctioning lung segments lacking communication with functional tracheobronchial trees. Systemic blood supply is commonly from the thoracic aorta, but arteries occasionally arise from other sites. We report a rare form of pulmonary sequestration with arterial supply from the right coronary artery.

Double right coronary artery with anomalous left main and septal arteries originating from the right coronary sinus.

Anomalies of the coronary artery are often asymptomatic and are uncommon in the general population. We present a case of a double right coronary artery along with anomalous origin of the left main coronary artery and first septal perforator, all originating from the right coronary sinus.

Congenital coronary anomalies of origin and distribution in adults: a coronary arteriographic study.

BACKGROUND: Coronary anomalies should be recognized to avoid problems during coronary intervention and cardiac surgery. METHODS AND RESULTS: We retrospectively reviewed 7400 coronary angiograms to find out the pattern and incidence of coronary anomalies of origin and distribution. We excluded patients with congenital heart diseases, coronary artery fistulae and patients with separate origin of the conus artery. and found 34 cases (0.46%) (22 males), mean age 50.7 +/- 12 years with coronary anomalies. Six cases underwent angiography prior to valve replacement and the rest were part of the evaluation for atherosclerotic coronary artery disease. The most common anomaly was separate origins of the left anterior descending coronary artery and left circumflex coronary artery [n=12 (35.3%)]. The next most common anomalies were origins of the right coronary artery from the left coronary sinus [n=7 (20.6%)] and left circumflex artery from the right sinus [n=6 (20%)]. A single coronary artery was seen in 3 cases (8.8%) which included one case of postmyocardial infarction ventricular septal rupture with triple-vessel disease, and another with two small coronary fistulae. One case each of the following coronary anomalies was found: (i) double right coronary artery, (ii) left anterior descending coronary artery from the right coronary sinus, (iii) all three coronary arteries originating separately from the right sinus, and (iv) left main coronary artery from the right sinus. Of these 34 patients, 11 (32.4%) had significant atherosclerotic disease in the anomalous vessel. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of primary coronary anomaly seems to be less than that in earlier reports, but the pattern of anomalies appears to be similar.

Tronco común persistente. Estudio anatomopatológico de 25 especímenes / Persistent common trunk. Anatomic study of 25 specimens

Se estudiaron con el sistema secuencial segmentario veinticinco corazones portadores de tronco común, con el propósito de informar sus características patológicas; además se elaboró una correlación anatomoembriológica, que explique la estructuración del complejo anatomopatológico de esta cardiopatía. Los hallazgos fueron: Tronco tipo I (96 por ciento), comunicación interventricular infundibular (96 por ciento), válvula troncal tetracular (92 por ciento), nacimiento de la arteria coronaria izquierda en la cara posterior del tronco (75 por ciento) y de la coronaria derecha en la cara anterior (96 por ciento), nacimiento de las arterias coronarias en senos opuestos en válvulas tetracúspides. La conexión biventricular del tronco fue la más frecuente (96 por ciento), siendo equilibrada en ambos ventrículos (60 por ciento) o predominando sobre el derecho (16 por ciento) o el izquierdo (16 por ciento). Las anomalías asociadas fueron: arco aórtico derecho, interrupción aórtica, origen anómalo de la arteria subclavia izquierda, anillo vascular, aneurisma del seno de Valsalva y ausencia de la rama izquierda de la arteria pulmonar. El tronco común se origina por falta de tabicación troncoconal y su presencia en el síndrome de Di George se debe a una falta de migración de células de las crestas neurales que intervienen en dicha tabicación. El conocimiento anatómico de la cardiopatía y las anomalías asociadas, constituyen una base referencial necesaria para interpretar la imagenología diagnóstica

Coronary artery-intramyocardial sinusoid communication in a case of pulmonary atresia with intact ventricular septum.

Intramyocardial sinusoid--coronary artery fistulous communications are well established channels in pulmonary atresia with intact ventricular septum. Angiographically flow can be demonstrated from the right ventricular cavity into the coronary arteries. We have histologically demonstrated such a communication in a case of pulmonary atresia with intact septum.

Vascularización coronaria de la tortuga marina Chelonia mydas / Coronary vascularization of the marine turtle Chelonia mydas

Se estudió la irrigación del corazón de la tortuga marina (Chelonia mydas) mediante técnicas de diafanización y disección. Fueron encontrados y descritos cinco patrones de irrigación coronaria, algunos de los cuales no se han informado en la literatura precedente. Se discute la presencia de anastomosis, así como el número y posición de los vasos colaterales