This review provides a contemporary overview of the epidemiology, pathobiology, diagnosis, functional assessment, and management of myocardial bridging.
Myocardial bridging (MB) is a congenital coronary anomaly in which a segment of the epicardial coronary artery traverses through the myocardium for a portion of its length. The muscle overlying the artery is termed a myocardial bridge, and the intramyocardial segment is referred to as a tunneled artery. MB can occur in any coronary artery, although is most commonly seen in the left anterior descending artery. Although traditionally considered benign in nature, increasing attention is being given to specific subsets of MB associated with ischemic symptomatology. The advent of contemporary functional and anatomic imaging modalities, both invasive and noninvasive, have dramatically improved our understanding of dynamic pathophysiology associated with MBs. This review provides a contemporary overview of epidemiology, pathobiology, diagnosis, functional assessment, and management of MBs.
“Our understanding of this condition has certainly evolved from the days of assuming most cases to be benign, but now that we have more accurate tests and treatments, we need larger-scale data to guide clinicians on when and how to treat.”
Sternheim et al. (Mon,) studied this question.
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: