Postpartum myocardial infarction

A 29 year old woman had a myocardial infarction three weeks post partum. Coronary angiography was performed six days later. No abnormalities were seen initially, but re-injection of the left coronary artery resulted in a dissection that extended through the anterior descending and circumflex branches and a reinfarction. This case suggests that myocardial infarctions occurring in patients with angiographically normal coronary arteries may be caused by dissections that heal by the time of catheterisation.