Surgical management of an aneurysmal coronary cameral fistula to the right atrium

Abstract

Coronary artery aneurysm and coronary cameral fistula are both often incidentally discovered, and uncommon diagnoses. A coronary artery aneurysm is defined as being 1.5x the size of the adjacent normal coronary artery, while a coronary cameral fistula is a coronary artery that has an abnormal tract directly into a chamber of the heart. In this case report we describe the case of a 72-year-old female who was discovered to have an aneurysmal branch of her right coronary artery fistulized to her right atrium. The fistula had a serpiginous tract and in the midportion of the tract there was a giant aneurysm (3.4 x 3.3 x 3.0 cm) before emptying into the posterior aspect of the right atrium. The aneurysmal aberrant coronary artery was repaired by oversewing the afferent and efferent limbs from the inside. The aneurysm walls were then oversewn. This case demonstrates a unique pathology that was managed with surgical intervention where no standard therapy exists.