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Multivessel acute coronary thrombosis and occlusion--an unusual cause of cardiogenic shock
Yoav Turgeman1, Khaled Suleiman, Shaul Atar
1Department of Cardiology, Ha'Emek Medical Center, Afula, Israel.
Insights
A patient with cardiogenic shock developed multivessel thrombus due to a single artery blockage. Thrombus aspiration was the primary treatment for this rare condition.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Interventional Cardiology
- Thrombosis
Background:
- ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) with cardiogenic shock is a critical condition.
- Acute coronary syndromes often involve thrombotic occlusion of a single coronary artery.
Observation:
- A 44-year-old male presented with STEMI and cardiogenic shock.
- Coronary angiography revealed acute thrombotic occlusion in the left anterior descending artery (LAD) and right coronary artery, with additional thrombi in the circumflex artery.
Findings:
- The patient was treated with multivessel thrombus aspiration and intra-aortic balloon pump.
- Intravascular ultrasound revealed only mild disease in the LAD one week post-treatment.
- This suggests plaque rupture in a single artery can cause low coronary perfusion, leading to widespread thrombus formation.
Implications:
- Multivessel thrombus formation secondary to single-vessel plaque rupture is a rare but plausible complication in cardiogenic shock.
- Thrombus aspiration should be considered the primary therapeutic strategy in such unique clinical scenarios.
Abstract:
A 44-year-old male was admitted with ST-elevation myocardial infarction and cardiogenic shock. Angiography revealed a left anterior descending artery (LAD) as well as right a coronary artery acute thrombotic occlusion and large mobile thrombi in the circumflex artery. He was treated mainly with multivessel thrombus aspiration and intra-aortic balloon insertion. Subsequent intravascular ultrasound a week later revealed mild disease of the LAD only. We suggest that in selected patients with cardiogenic shock, plaque rupture with resultant acute thrombosis in a single coronary artery may lead to low coronary perfusion pressure and consequent multivessel thrombus formation. Thrombus aspiration should be the main therapeutic modality in such unusual cases.
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