Stent implantation and vascular healing of a spontaneous coronary artery dissection assessed by optical coherence tomography in a patient with acute coronary syndrome

Highlights: • Spontaneous coronary artery dissection is a rare condition with limited treatment options. • Percutaneous coronary intervention is often risky and problematic and the procedure is difficult to evaluate. • Optical coherence tomography can detect and evaluate the intravascular procedure and vascular healing of coronary dissections. SummaryA 60-year old woman with non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction, underwent coronary angiogram combined with optical coherence tomography (OCT) revealing a long dissection in the right coronary artery. The patient experienced peri-procedural chest pain, the electrocardiogram showed ST-segment elevations, and compromised coronary blood flow, why mechanical revascularization with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) was indicated. At 1-month follow-up, OCT revealed early, competent vascular healing, and a distal stenosis was treated with PCI. The patient has been asymptomatic since the procedure for three years.