Four-year recurrence rate and prognosis of the apical ballooning syndrome.
OBJECTIVE
This study sought to assess the long-term prognosis of patients with apical ballooning syndrome (ABS).


BACKGROUND
Apical ballooning syndrome is a recently described acute cardiac syndrome of uncertain etiology and prognosis.


METHODS
We retrospectively identified 100 unselected patients with a confirmed diagnosis of ABS by angiography. Recurrences of ABS and mortality were recorded.


RESULTS
Over a mean follow-up of 4.4 +/- 4.6 years, 31 patients continued to have episodes of chest pain and 10 patients had recurrence of ABS, for a recurrence rate of 11.4% over the first 4 years. Seventeen patients died in 4.7 +/- 4.8 years of follow-up. There was no difference in survival or in cardiovascular survival to an age- and gender-matched population.


CONCLUSIONS
The recurrence rate for ABS was 11.4% over 4 years after initial presentation. Recurrence of chest pain is common. Four-year survival was not different from that in an age-matched and gender-matched population.
Division of Cardiovascular Diseases, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota 55905, USA.
Ahmad A
AA
Elesber
Abhiram
A
Prasad
Ryan J
RJ
Lennon
R Scott
RS
Wright
Amir
A
Lerman
Charanjit S
CS
Rihal
D000368:Aged; D015984:Causality; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008910:Minnesota / Q000453:epidemiology; D011379:Prognosis; D012008:Recurrence; D012307:Risk Factors; D016019:Survival Analysis; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*