The deadly double infarct syndrome treated by two-vessel primary angioplasty and stenting

Abstract

Percutaneous transluminal primary angioplasty (PTCA) has become an accepted therapy for treatment of acute myocardial infarction. Coronary stenting in the setting of acute myocardial infarction has been found to have several advantages, and has been successfully performed routinely at various centers. However, we are unaware of any report that describes successful angioplasty performed on two simultaneously occluded coronary arteries (the deadly double infarct syndrome). This is the first report of successful primary angioplasty with stenting performed on a patient with occlusion of two vessels simultaneously. We review the literature and suggest that this may prove to be a viable alternative in an emergency in two-vessel coronary artery bypass grafting.