Human coronary artery size during life. A cinearteriographic study.

Abstract

The diameters of large epicardial coronary arteries were measured by quantitative cinearteriography in 99 patients. Average coronary size was larger than normal in patients with lesions associated with left ventricular hypertrophy and∕or dilation. The size of the coronary arteries supplying the left ventricle was normal in patients with pure mitral stenosis and in those with the “floppy mitral valve syndrome” (when mitral regurgitation was slight or absent). The left coronary artery was larger than the right coronary artery in 83% of cases. Measurement of coronary artery size is a simple and useful extension of coronary arteriography.