Occlusion of Abnormal Circumflex Coronary Artery During Mitral Valve Repair

We describe a rare but interesting complication of totally endoscopic robotic mitral valve repair in a patient with severe mitral regurgitation. The mitral valve was repaired robotically by standard techniques, and the intraoperative transesophageal echocardiogram demonstrated no residual mitral regurgitation. However, there was unexpected hypokinesia of the posterior and lateral walls of the left ventricle, with subsequent electrocardiography showing acute ST elevations of the lateral segment. Immediate cardiac catheterization revealed occlusion of the left circumflex artery. Aspiration thrombectomy was performed and a drug-eluting stent placed to restore the contour, thus preventing potential morbidity of the patient.