A rare congenital cardiac anomaly was identified in a woman at the age of 40, during a routine preoperative evaluation for uterus surgery. The woman was successfully treated at Medicover Hospital at Health City, Arilova, in Visakhapatnam, recently.
Munikunta, 40, a mother of two children, from East Godavari, presented with ECG abnormalities, during a routine check up, though she did not have any cardiac symptoms. It was revealed that the woman was suffering from an extremely rare coronary disease ALCAPA (Anomalous Left Coronary Artery from the Pulmonary Artery), which exists before birth, and occurs in one in three lakh live births.
Her ECG and 2D echo raised a doubt of a silent heart attack in the past. Her heart function was poor. However, she didn’t recollect any such cardiac episode in the past. There was no history of heart attack at an early age in the family too. She was suggested for coronary angiography for further evaluation.
ALCAPA is widely known to cause heart attack soon after birth and almost all the babies die, if not treated early. The lucky few survive the disease into adulthood.
Dr. Hemant Behera, Director Cath Lab, said that she was given anti-heart failure medication and counselled for early cardiac reparative surgery for her future safety. The patient was treated successfully by open heart surgery (coronary artery bypass surgery) by a team of cardiologists, cardiothoracic surgeons, cardiac anesthetists, nursing and paramedical staff, headed by Dr. Karunakar Padhy, Cardiothoracic surgeon. Her recovery was satisfactory and she was ready for discharge, he said.
