[Acute coronary syndrome in the form of variant angina pectoris while performing stress echocardiography]
Tomasz Wardega1, Janusz Rzeźniczak, Jarosław Drozdz
1Oddział Wewnetrzny, SPZOZ, ul. Poznańska 129, Pleszew. tomek.wardega@wp.pl
Kardiologia Polska
|April 9, 2008
Insights
A patient experienced severe ischemia and low blood pressure during a dobutamine stress test. Coronary angiography revealed no blockages, suggesting coronary artery spasm as the likely cause.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Diagnostic Imaging
Background:
- Dobutamine stress echocardiography is a common diagnostic tool for assessing coronary artery disease.
- Ischemia and hypotension can occur during stress testing, necessitating careful evaluation.
Observation:
- A 57-year-old female patient developed acute myocardial ischemia with contractile dysfunction during dobutamine stress echocardiography.
- The patient also experienced profound hypotension concurrently with the ischemic changes.
Findings:
- Coronary angiography performed post-event showed no significant coronary artery abnormalities.
- The clinical presentation strongly suggested coronary artery spasm as the etiology of the observed ischemia and hypotension.
Implications:
- This case highlights the importance of considering coronary artery spasm in patients presenting with ischemia and hypotension during stress echocardiography, even with normal coronary angiograms.
- Further investigation into vasospastic angina mechanisms may be warranted in such cases.
Abstract:
A case of a 57-year-old female who underwent dobutamine stress echocardiography is presented. During the test, acute ischaemia with contractile abnormalities and profound hypotension occurred. Coronary angiography showed no abnormalities and coronary spasm was suspected as a possible cause of symptoms.
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