Recanalized chronic coronary thrombus: unraveling a hazy coronary lesion by intravascular ultrasound.

Hazy lesions in coronary angiography can often be a puzzle for the interventional cardiologist. Recanalized chronic coronary thrombus, although rare, is one of the potential diagnoses. Intracoronary imaging with intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) are tools that can guide to the correct diagnosis. We present the images of a case where IVUS was used to unravel such a lesion.

A catastrophic cause of chest pain.

Chest pain can be a manifestation of aortic pathology and must be considered in any patient with a history of chest trauma, hypertension, atherosclerosis, connective tissue disorder and/or radiographically abnormal aortic contours. Acute intramural haematoma can resemble acute myocardial infarction and can be life-threatening if not correctly diagnosed. Electrocardiogram (ECG) must be carried out in all patients as it helps distinguish acute myocardial infarction (for which antiplatelets and anticoagulants may be life-saving) from intramural haematoma (for which these drugs may be detrimental). Other imaging modalities may be considered depending upon the clinical situation.