Related Experiment Videos
Acetylcholine-induced coronary microvascular vasospasm in a patient with angina pectoris and normal coronary
N Maeda1, H Hiraoka, T Nakamura
1Second Department of Internal Medicine, Osaka University Medical School, Suita, Japan.
Angiology
|December 31, 1997
Insights
Continuous intracoronary infusion of acetylcholine caused a significant decrease in coronary blood flow without epicardial narrowing. This suggests a diagnosis of microvascular vasospastic angina, highlighting impaired coronary microcirculation.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Vascular Physiology
Background:
- Coronary artery disease diagnosis often relies on epicardial stenosis.
- Microvascular dysfunction can cause angina symptoms despite normal epicardial arteries.
Observation:
- A continuous intracoronary infusion of acetylcholine was administered.
- Coronary blood flow was measured using an intracoronary Doppler flow wire.
Findings:
- Acetylcholine induced a marked decrease in coronary blood flow.
- No significant epicardial coronary narrowing was observed during the infusion.
Implications:
- This case supports the concept of microvascular vasospastic angina.
- It underscores the importance of assessing coronary microcirculation in patients with angina and non-obstructive coronary artery disease.
Abstract:
We demonstrated a continuous intracoronary infusion of acetylcholine-induced marked decrease of coronary blood flow estimated by intracoronary Doppler flow wire without significant epicardial coronary narrowing. This case can be called a patient with microvascular vasospastic angina.