Padfield Gareth J
Department of Cardiology, Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, Edinburgh, UK.
Eur J Echocardiogr. 2009 Jul;10(5):718-20. doi: 10.1093/ejechocard/jep049. Epub 2009 May 4.
An 85-year-old woman underwent transthoracic echocardiography for the investigation of breathlessness and atypical chest discomfort. Clinical examination was unremarkable. A standard 12 lead ECG demonstrated anterior T wave inversion, but was otherwise normal. Transthoracic echocardiography demonstrated a normally functioning left ventricle with hypertrophy and trabeculation of the apical and lateral segments. Imaging with colour flow Doppler demonstrated blood flow from the epicardial surface into the left ventricular cavity through the hypertrophied segment of myocardium during diastole. A diagnosis of multiple, diffuse coronary-left ventricular fistulae predominantly of a large diagonal branch of the left anterior descending artery was made at coronary angiography. The patient responded well to oral beta-blockade, reporting an improvement in symptoms 2 months later in the outpatient clinic. The echocardiographic appearances of coronary fistulae may cause diagnostic confusion, particularly in the presence of myocardial hypertrophy and trabeculation.
一名85岁女性因气促和非典型胸痛接受经胸超声心动图检查。临床检查无异常。标准12导联心电图显示前壁T波倒置,但其他方面正常。经胸超声心动图显示左心室功能正常,心尖段和侧壁段肥厚并伴有小梁形成。彩色多普勒血流成像显示舒张期有血流从心外膜表面通过肥厚的心肌段进入左心室腔。冠状动脉造影诊断为多发、弥漫性冠状动脉-左心室瘘,主要累及左前降支的一条大对角支。患者对口服β受体阻滞剂反应良好,2个月后在门诊复诊时症状有所改善。冠状动脉瘘的超声心动图表现可能会导致诊断混淆,尤其是在存在心肌肥厚和小梁形成的情况下。