Cutting balloon angioplasty for in-stent restenosis of the aortic coarctation in a young boy presenting with systemic hypertension of the upper extremities

Abstract

An 8.25-year-old boy was incidentally found to have systemic hypertension of the upper extremities. Blood pressures of the upper extremities were 142-150/86-98 mmHg, and those of the lower extremities 110-116/60-66 mmHg. Doppler echocardiography showed in-stent restenosis of the aortic coarctation. Traditional high-pressure balloon angioplasty failed to dilate this inveterate in-stent restenosis. Instead, a cutting balloon angioplasty was performed. The lumen was dilated from 4.80 mm to 7.89 mm. The pressure gradient dropped from 32 mmHg to 9 mmHg. Blood pressures of the upper extremities were 112-116/76-78 mmHg, and those of the lower extremities 100-104/70-72 mmHg.This paper highlights that a cutting balloon angioplasty can serve as a juste milieu to relieve in-stent restenosis of the aortic coarctation when traditional high-pressure balloon angioplasty is debatable.