Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection: A Rare Manifestation of Alport Syndrome

Spontaneous coronary artery dissection in patients with prior psychophysical stress: a systematic review of case reports and case series

BACKGROUND

Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is an underdiagnosed cause of acute coronary syndrome, particularly in younger women. Due to limited information about SCAD, case reports and case series can provide valuable insights into its features and management. This study aimed to comprehensively evaluate the features of SCAD patients who experienced psychophysical stress before the SCAD event.

METHODS

We conducted an electronic search of PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science from inception until January 7, 2023. We included case reports or series that described patients with SCAD who had experienced psychophysical stress before SCAD. Patients with pregnancy-associated SCAD were excluded from our analysis.

RESULTS

In total, we included 93 case reports or series describing 105 patients with SCAD. The average patient age was 44.29 ± 13.05 years and a total of 44 (41.9%) of patients were male. Among the included SCAD patients the most prevalent comorbidities were fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD) and hypertension with the prevalence of 36.4 and 21.9%, respectively. Preceding physical stress was more frequently reported in men than in women; 38 out of 44 (86.4%) men reported physical stress, while 36 out of 61 (59.1%) females reported physical stress (p value = 0.009). On the other hand, the opposite was true for emotional stress (men: 6 (13.6%)), women: 29 (47.6%), p value < 0.001). Coronary angiography was the main diagnostic tool. The most frequently involved artery was the left anterior descending (LAD) (62.9%). In our study, recurrence of SCAD due to either the progression of a previous lesion or new SCAD in another coronary location occurred more frequently in those treated conservatively, however the observed difference was not statistically significant (p value = 0.138).

CONCLUSION

While physical stress seems to precede SCAD in most cases, emotional stress is implicated in females more than males.

Ascending aortic aneurysm and histopathology in Alport syndrome: a case report

BACKGROUND

Alport syndrome (AS) is caused by mutations in type IV collagen genes that typically target and compromise the integrity of basement membranes in kidney, ocular, and sensorineural cochlear tissues. Type IV and V collagens are also integral components of arterial walls, and whereas collagenopathies including AS are implicated in aortic disease, the incidence of aortic aneurysm in AS is unknown probably because of underreporting. Consequently, AS is not presently considered an independent risk factor for aortic aneurysm and more detailed case studies including histological evidence of basement membrane abnormalities are needed to determine such a possible linkage.

CASE PRESENTATION

Here, we present unique histopathological findings of an ascending aortic aneurysm collected at the time of surgery from an AS patient wherein hypertension was the only other known risk factor.

CONCLUSIONS

The studies reveal classical histological features of aortic aneurysm, including atheroma, lymphocytic infiltration, elastin disruption, and myxoid degeneration with probable AS association.

Vertebral and Basilar Artery Dissection in a Patient With Alport Syndrome

Basilar artery occlusion (BAO) is a rare cause of stroke associated with significant morbidity and mortality. It is most frequently thromboembolic in nature, but may be caused by vertebral artery dissection. We present a case of BAO in a 36-year-old woman with Alport syndrome. She was treated with emergent thrombectomy via the right vertebral artery with return to baseline neurological status. Her clinical status deteriorated later the same day and she was found to have re-occlusion. Repeat thrombectomy was complicated by persistent re-occlusion requiring 7 passes to achieve reperfusion. Unfortunately, her neurological exam remained poor and she was transitioned to comfort care, expiring on admission day 3. An autopsy demonstrated acute dissection of the left vertebral artery, basilar artery, and bilateral posterior cerebral arteries. Alport syndrome is a type IV collagenopathy most known for causing kidney disease. It may also be associated with vascular fragility as type IV collagen forms a significant component of the vascular basement membrane. There are reports of aortic, coronary, and cervical dissections, but few reports of intracranial dissections in patients with Alport syndrome. While iatrogenic dissection cannot be ruled out, the histological findings in this case are most consistent with spontaneous arterial dissection as the cause of her initial neurologic presentation. This highlights the need for further investigation into the relationship between Alport syndrome and vascular fragility and should alert clinicians to the possibility of intracranial dissection in patients with AS.

Arterial dissections: Common features and new perspectives

Arterial dissections, which involve an abrupt tear in the wall of a major artery resulting in the intramural accumulation of blood, are a family of catastrophic disorders causing major, potentially fatal sequelae. Involving diverse vascular beds, including the aorta or coronary, cervical, pulmonary, and visceral arteries, each type of dissection is devastating in its own way. Traditionally they have been studied in isolation, rather than collectively, owing largely to the distinct clinical consequences of dissections in different anatomical locations - such as stroke, myocardial infarction, and renal failure. Here, we review the shared and unique features of these arteriopathies to provide a better understanding of this family of disorders. Arterial dissections occur commonly in the young to middle-aged, and often in conjunction with hypertension and/or migraine; the latter suggesting they are part of a generalized vasculopathy. Genetic studies as well as cellular and molecular investigations of arterial dissections reveal striking similarities between dissection types, particularly their pathophysiology, which includes the presence or absence of an intimal tear and vasa vasorum dysfunction as a cause of intramural hemorrhage. Pathway perturbations common to all types of dissections include disruption of TGF-β signaling, the extracellular matrix, the cytoskeleton or metabolism, as evidenced by the finding of mutations in critical genes regulating these processes, including LRP1, collagen genes, fibrillin and TGF-β receptors, or their coupled pathways. Perturbances in these connected signaling pathways contribute to phenotype switching in endothelial and vascular smooth muscle cells of the affected artery, in which their physiological quiescent state is lost and replaced by a proliferative activated phenotype. Of interest, dissections in various anatomical locations are associated with distinct sex and age predilections, suggesting involvement of gene and environment interactions in disease pathogenesis. Importantly, these cellular mechanisms are potentially therapeutically targetable. Consideration of arterial dissections as a collective pathology allows insight from the better characterized dissection types, such as that involving the thoracic aorta, to be leveraged to inform the less common forms of dissections, including the potential to apply known therapeutic interventions already clinically available for the former.

Spontaneous coronary artery dissection: A review of diagnostic methods and management strategies

Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is a rare non-atherosclerotic cause of acute coronary syndromes defined as non-iatrogenic, non-traumatic separation of the coronary artery wall. The most common profile is a middle-aged woman between 44 and 53 years with few cardiovascular risk factors. SCAD is frequently linked with predisposing factors, such as postpartum, fibromuscular dysplasia or other vasculopathies, connective tissue disease and hormonal therapy, and it is often triggered by intense physical or emotional stress, sympathomimetic drugs, childbirth and activities increasing shear stress of the coronary artery walls. Patients with SCAD usually present at the emergency department with chest discomfort, chest pain, and rapid heartbeat or fluttery. During the last decades, the most common problem of SCAD was the lack of awareness about this condition which has led to significant underdiagnosis and misdiagnosis. However, modern imaging techniques such as optical coherence tomography, intravascular ultrasound, coronary angiography or magnetic resonance imaging have contributed to the early diagnosis of the disease. Treatment of SCAD remains controversial, especially during the last years, where invasive techniques are being used more often and in more emergent cardiac syndromes. Although conservative treatment combining aspirin and beta-blocker remains the recommended strategy in most cases, revascularization could also be suggested as a method of treatment in specific indications, but with a higher risk of complications. The prognosis of SCAD is usually good and long-term mortality seems to be low in these patients. Follow-up should be performed on a regular basis.

Fibrillar Collagen Variants in Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection

IMPORTANCE

Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is an increasingly recognized nonatherosclerotic cause of acute myocardial infarction enriched among individuals with early-onset myocardial infarction but is of unclear etiology.

OBJECTIVE

To assess which genes contribute to the development of SCAD.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

To prioritize genes influencing risk for SCAD, whole-exome sequencing was performed among individuals with SCAD in the discovery and replication cohorts from a tertiary care hospital outpatient specialty clinic, and gene set enrichment analyses were also performed for disruptive coding variants. All patients were sequentially enrolled beginning July 2013. Aggregate prevalence of rare disruptive variants for prioritized gene sets was compared between individuals with SCAD with population-based controls comprising 46 468 UK Biobank participants with whole-exome sequencing. Complementary mice models were used for in vivo validation. Analysis took place between June 2020 and January 2021.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

The frequency and identity of rare genetic variants in individuals with SCAD.

RESULTS

Of 130 patients, 109 (83.8%) were female (26 of 32 [81.2%] in the discovery cohort and 83 of 98 [84.7%] in the replication cohort) with mean (SD) age at first SCAD event of 48.41 (8.76) years in the discovery cohort and 47.74 (10.09) years in the replication cohort. Across all patients with SCAD, rare disruptive variants were found within 10 collagen genes (COL3A1, COL5A1, COL4A1, COL6A1, COL5A2, COL12A1, COL4A5, COL1A1, COL1A2, and COL27A1) were 17-fold (P = 1.5 × 10-9) enriched among individuals with SCAD compared with a background of 2506 constrained genes expressed in coronary artery. Furthermore, compared with individuals from the UK Biobank, individuals with SCAD were 1.75-fold (P = .04) more likely to carry disruptive rare variants within fibrillar collagen genes. Complementary mice models haploinsufficient for Col3a1 or Col5a1, the 2 most common collagen gene variants identified in SCAD cases, demonstrated increased risk of arterial dissection and increased size of arterial diameters especially in female mice, with resulting changes in collagen fibril organization and diameter.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

Unbiased gene discovery in patients with SCAD with independent human and murine validation highlights the role of the extracellular matrix dysfunction in SCAD.

Myocardial Infarction With Non-obstructive Coronary Arteries: An Updated Overview of Pathophysiology, Diagnosis, and Management

Myocardial infarction with non-obstructive coronary arteries (MINOCA) refers to acute myocardial infarction with normal or near-normal coronary arteries. The MINOCA is a heterogeneous group of conditions, and possible etiologies are coronary artery spasm, spontaneous coronary artery dissection, coronary thromboembolism, coronary plaque disruption, coronary microvascular dysfunction, supply and demand mismatch. It is more common in young adults, with women having a higher chance of getting MINOCA than men. Considering MINOCA as a clinically dynamic working diagnostic that needs further investigation rather than a “true” diagnosis is proposed. Optical coherence tomography (OCT), intravenous ultrasound (IVUS), cardiac MRI may be required to stratify the underlying mechanism. Due to the lack of evidence-based literature and prospective randomized controlled studies, therapeutic management is limited. Consequently, the strategy is patient-specific. The prognosis of MINOCA patients remains unclear and depends upon the underlying etiology. This article aims to review the literature about various aspects of MINOCA, including pathophysiology, diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment.

Myocardial infarction with non-obstructive coronary artery disease

As a result of the increased use of coronary angiography in acute myocardial infarction in the last two decades, myocardial infarction with non-obstructive coronary arteries (MINOCA) has received growing attention in everyday clinical practice. At the same time, research interest in MINOCA has increased significantly. MINOCA is a heterogeneous disease entity seen in 5-10% of all patients with myocardial infarction, especially in women. Clinically, MINOCA may be difficult to distinguish from other non-ischaemic conditions that can cause similar symptoms and myocardial injury. There is still some confusion around the diagnosis, investigation and management of patients with MINOCA. The present review summarises the current knowledge of MINOCA regarding epidemiology, pathophysiology, investigation, and treatment, with a special focus on imaging modalities. In addition, remaining important knowledge gaps are highlighted.

Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection: Mechanisms, Diagnosis and Management

Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is a relatively infrequent cause of acute coronary syndrome that usually affects young to middle-aged women. Mainly because of its low prevalence, until recently, most of the evidence on this condition was derived from case reports and small series. Over the last 5 years, more robust evidence has become available from larger retrospective and prospective cohorts of patients with SCAD. The increase in knowledge and recognition of this entity has led to the publication of expert consensus on both sides of the Atlantic. However, new data are continuously accumulating from larger cohorts of patients with SCAD, bringing new light to this little-understood condition. The aim of this article is to update the knowledge on SCAD, including new information from recent studies published since the consensus documents from the European Society of Cardiology and the American Heart Association.