title: Coronary plaque instability in severe acute respiratory syndrome.
abstract: In his second week of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) illness, a patient developed an unusually complicated course of acute coronary syndrome. One day after initial stabilization of a non-ST-elevated anterior myocardial infarction (MI), he sustained an ST-elevated anterior MI. Eight hours after emergency coronary intervention to the culprit lesion, he developed another ST-elevated MI in the inferior territory. Acute inflammation and cytokine storm in the immunopathological phase of SARS may play a role in coronary plaque instability. Physicians should be alert to this potentially fatal complication and adopt appropriate vigilant and aggressive management strategies.
authors.forename: Kin-Lam
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Tsui
authors.forename: Tat-Chi
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Leung
authors.forename: Loretta Yin-Chun
authors.initials: LY
authors.lastname: Yam
authors.forename: Loletta Kit-Ying
authors.initials: LK
authors.lastname: So
authors.forename: Edwin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Poon
authors.forename: Kwok-Cheung
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Lung
authors.forename: Shu-Kin
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D017023:Coronary Angiography; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology*; D045169:Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / Q000150:complications*; D013577:Syndrome