Ventricular Septal Rupture Secondary to Late-Presenting Myocardial Infarction

Over 800,000 acute myocardial infarction (AMI) events occur annually in the United States. Increased emphasis on primary prevention strategies has decreased the incidence of AMI.1,2 Treatment of AMI includes reperfusion of the culprit coronary arteries, and expeditious intervention has led to a decrease in the rate of post-AMI complications.3 However, these complications still occur in approximately 0.3% of patients presenting with AMI; this is estimated to be about 2,400 patients annually.4,5 Myocardial tissue necrosis secondary to AMI can lead to several different mechanical complications, including papillary muscle rupture, ventricular septal rupture (VSR), and free-wall rupture.2,3,6 These complications usually occur within the first seven days after an AMI.2,3 Mortality from one of these MCs is over 42%, with women and patients older than 75 years of age having an even higher mortality rate.5 This makes prevention, recognition, and prompt treatment critically important. Here we present a case report of a patient with post-AMI VSR.