Myocardial preservation with alternate coronary artery occlusion and reversal of flow through collateral vessels.

In 1980, a 46-year-old man suffered occlusion of his left anterior descending coronary artery with preservation of myocardium due to collateral flow from a patent right coronary artery. Six years later, unstable angina recurred, this time due to right coronary occlusion but with myocardial preservation due to reversal of collateral flow from his now recanalized left anterior descending artery.