PubMed · 15014192
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Junya Ako, Yasuhiro Honda, Peter J Fitzgerald. 2004-03-11. Conditions associated with ST-segment elevation.. https://doi.org/10.1056/nejm200403113501118
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High doses of calcium antagonists and nitrates are the treatment of choice in vasospasm angina when no stenosis or mild stenosis is present. In ca. 5-30% patients this kind of treatment is not effective. We present five cases of variant angina with acute coronary syndrome in patients despite standard pharmacological treatment. These patients also did not respond for intracoronary nitroglycerine injection. They were successfully treated with stent implantation in place of vasospasm. Our observations indicate that early enough interventional treatment prevent myocardial infarction. In one case in which stent placement was performed 12 h after clinical manifestation myocardial infarction with Q waves and enzymes release occurred. In others, accurately treated with stent implantation, coronary spasm did not produce myocardial damage. We did not see any clinical and biochemical evidence of myocardial infarction.
Patients with variant angina represent a diagnostic and therapeutic dilemma. Variant angina is a disease with various causes, variations in treatment guidelines and variable prognosis. In an era of robotic cardiac surgery and automatic cardioverter defibrillators, it is regrettable that we lack enough information on the optimal management of this entity. Lack of randomised trials and a tendency for spontaneous remissions makes interpretation of results difficult. We review the pathophysiology, presentation and recent developments in medical and surgical management of variant angina. Literature is full of conflicting data and it is difficult to make specific recommendations.
We describe a postmenopausal women with new onset of variant angina caused by thyrotoxicosis due to Graves' disease. During exercise bicycle ergometry at 50 Watts, the patient developed typical angina with ST segment elevation in the precordial leads. A coronary angiogram revealed normal coronary arteries. Graves' disease with overt hyperthyroidism was diagnosed. After achieving an euthyroid state with administration of propylthiouracil, the symptoms resolved completely and the patient had a normal exercise capacity without electrocardiographic changes. Thus, we conclude that in patients with thyrotoxicosis, variant angina and normal coronary arteries, restoration of normal thyroid function may be curative.