Intra-atrial course of right coronary artery: A case report
Giulio Barbiero1, Giuseppe Maiolino2, Anna Argiolas3
1Department of Integrated Diagnostic Services, DIDAS, Radiology Unit, University Hospital of Padua, Padua 35128, Italy. giulio.barbiero@aopd.veneto.it.
Background:
Intra-atrial right coronary artery (RCA) is a rare and generally asymptomatic anomaly of development of the coronary arteries. This malformation could potentially expose the patient to a catastrophic outcome in the case of injury during interventional or surgical procedures. Currently, only a few case reports and no systematic reviews are available in the literature.
Case Summary:
We report the case of a 54-year-old man with atypical chest pain who underwent multi-detector computed tomography angiography (MDCTA). The exam revealed no significant coronary artery stenoses; however, an intra-atrial course of mid RCA was evident. Medical therapy was administered, and the patient was discharged to home without undergoing a conventional angiography. Previously reported autoptic and clinical cases were retrieved from the PubMed literature database to compare the clinicopathological features of this case.
Conclusion:
MDCTA depicted the abnormal course of the coronary artery in this patient as an intra-atrial course of the mid RCA. Finding this abnormality was crucial to avoid an inadvertent injury during interventional or surgical procedures.
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