Highlights the rare but fatal risk of coronary artery embolization during cardiac catheterization in patients with aortic valve endocarditis.
Coronary artery embolization has been associated with sudden cardiac death. It is more commonly seen with aortic valve endocarditis. It manifests as acute myocardial ischemia or infarction, causing instability of the cardiac rhythm, which may be fatal. We report a patient with aortic valve endocarditis who had sudden cardiac death following coronary angiography. Autopsy revealed embolic occlusion of the left main coronary artery. Cathet. Cardiovasc. Intervent. 50:74–77, 2000. © 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Shamsham et al. (2000) studied this question.