Identification and Management of Iatrogenic Aortocoronary Dissection

Abstract

Iatrogenic aortocoronary dissection (IACD) is a rare but potentially life-threatening complication during coronary catheterizations. Although the incidence was relatively low, the dissection often leads to procedure failure with increased risk of myocardial infarction and death. IACD is mainly caused by disruption of intima at the ostia of left or right coronary artery during interventional procedures, and appears as luminal filling defects or persistence of contrast (“extraluminal cap”) or intimal tear outside the coronary lumen. Dissection could disseminate antegradely and lead to subtotal or total occlusion of the coronary lumen. Similarly, it could extend retrogradely into the sinus of Valsalva and cusp, or even the ascending aorta, aortic arch, or descending aorta, leading to hemodynamic collapse. Early identification and prompt management is crucial to the prognosis of patients with IACD. Immediate bail-out stenting should be performed as rapidly as possible in most cases of severe dissection, even when significant propagation has already occurred. Surgery should only be considered when stenting failed to seal the dissection and the patients had hemodynamic compromise.