Invasive and anticoagulant treatment for coronary ectasia: a single operator’s experience in a tertiary hospital in South Africa

INTRODUCTION Coronary artery ectasia (CAE) is a rare but well-recognised condition involving dilatation of a coronary artery to more than 1.5 times the diameter of the adjacent portion of the artery. As far as we are aware, the disease has not been described in any local literature and no other research has been conducted in Africa. We carried out this research in order to establish the incidence of the condition in South Africa, as well as the possible preferred method of treatment. METHODS Cases were identified from the database of the practice. The study involved only patients who were classified to have Markis type I, II and III disease. From a total of approximately 2,000 angiographies performed during the study period, CAE types I, II and III were diagnosed in 20 patients. Patients with type IV CAE were excluded from the group. Nineteen patients were male and were in their fourth or fifth decade of life, and one was female. Three of the patients were Indian, one was black, and the rest were white. RESULTS Four patients in the group had diabetes, 13 were smokers and eight had hypertension. Dyslipidaemia was observed in seven patients. The most commonly affected area of the coronary artery was the RCA-19 (isolated, or in combination). Patients were treated mainly with anticoagulation and, when necessary, with angioplasty and stent implantation. Morbidity was seen in 5% of the patients and no mortality was observed. CONCLUSION Most of the patients were male, and the occlusion involved mostly the right coronary artery. The cause of occlusion is still unknown, but it is thought to be due to slow blood flow, damaged endothelium, or a combination of the two. The best therapeutic approach is not known as yet.