title: Absent left main coronary artery: angiographic findings in 83 patients with separate ostia of the left anterior descending and circumflex arteries at the left aortic sinus.
abstract: Among 20,332 adult patients who underwent consecutive cardiac catheterization and coronary arteriography, 83 (0.4%) were angiographically identified as having an absent left main coronary artery. The angiographic characteristics of this coronary anomaly include: (1) the presence of two well-separated coronary ostia at the left aortic sinus resulting in separate origin of the left anterior descending and circumflex arteries; (2) an increased incidence of left coronary dominance; (3) a higher (6%) than usual (0.5% to 1.5%) incidence of myocardial bridging; (4) lack of a high incidence of congenital heart anomalies; and (5) an incidence of atherosclerotic coronary artery disease similar to that of patients whose left main artery is intact. In 39% of the patients difficulties in selectively cannulating the separate ostium of the circumflex artery and adequately opacifying this vessel resulted in a need to change the diagnostic catheter size. Recognition of this coronary anomaly is needed to ensure accurate angiographic interpretation and is important for patients undergoing cardiac surgery to selectively perfuse these separate vessels during cardiopulmonary bypass.
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiology, Medical College of Virginia, Richmond.
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Topaz
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: DiSciascio
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Cowley
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Soffer
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lanter
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Goudreau
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nath
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Warner
authors.forename: G W
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: Vetrovec
mesh_terms: D006328:Cardiac Catheterization; D017023:Coronary Angiography; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000453:epidemiology; D003330:Coronary Vessel Anomalies / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology; D006349:Heart Valve Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged