Repeat Coronary Artery Dissection in Pregnancy: A Case Report and Review of the Literature |
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Authors: | Casey P. Bitting D.O. Ross E. Zumwalt M.D. |
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Affiliation: | 1. Department of Pathology, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM;2. Office of the Medical Investigator, Albuquerque, NM |
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Abstract: | Non‐atherosclerotic spontaneous coronary artery dissection (NA‐SCAD) is a rare cause of morbidity and mortality with a propensity for young, healthy, and often peripartum women. NA‐SCAD etiology is poorly understood, with possible hormonal and hereditary mechanisms. Current treatment strategies range from conservative management (often showing resolution on angiographic follow‐up) to invasive angiographic procedures. Rarely, NA‐SCAD has recurred in another coronary artery, ranging hours to years later. We report NA‐SCAD of the right coronary artery (RCA) in a 30‐year old, 3‐month postpartum female with an additional autopsy finding of remote myocardial infarction (MI) in the left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery territory. The remote MI is consistent with prior NA‐SCAD of the LAD and, given the medical history, may have occurred in the peripartum period of the decedent first pregnancy 3 years earlier. As such, to the best of our knowledge, this may represent the first reported case of NA‐SCAD recurrence in a subsequent pregnancy. |
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Keywords: | forensic science forensic pathology pregnancy peripartum myocardial infarction female spontaneous coronary artery dissection multiple acute coronary syndrome recurrent |
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