Cardiogenic shock in a young woman with SCAD: The importance of early access to VA-ECMO in the community.

Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is a common cause of myocardial infarction in young and middle-aged women. Patients with SCAD present rarely with hemodynamic collapse and cardiogenic shock, requiring immediate resuscitation and mechanical circulatory support. Percutaneous mechanical circulatory support may serve as a bridge to recovery, decision or heart transplantation. We present a case of a young woman with SCAD of the left main coronary artery, presenting with ST-elevation myocardial infarction, cardiac arrest and cardiogenic shock. She was stabilized emergently with Impella and early escalation with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECPELLA) at a non-surgical community hospital. Despite revascularization with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), her left ventricular recovery was poor, and ultimately required cardiac transplantation on day 5 of her presentation.

High rates of false-positive hepatitis C antibody tests can occur after left ventricular assist device implantation.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) screening is routine before cardiac transplantation, and virus presence is an exclusion at most centers. Left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) are often used as a bridge to transplantation and cause immune activation. We collected data on 32 consecutive patients undergoing LVAD placement between January 2006 and February 2008 at a single center. Of the 23 potential bridge-to-transplant patients with HCV testing before and after LVAD, seven (30%) turned positive for HCV antibody but did not have true HCV infection on confirmatory testing. Cardiac transplant care providers should be aware of possible false-positive HCV antibody tests in this setting.

Transfer of peanut allergy from the donor to a lung transplant recipient.

Among solid organs, transfer of peanut allergy from donor to recipient has been implicated after liver transplantation. We report the first case in which such transfer occurred after a lung transplant. A 42-year-old woman with history of sarcoidosis underwent a successful bilateral lung transplant from a donor who died from anaphylactic shock after eating peanut-related food. Seven months later, she ate a peanut butter cookie at a transplant support group meeting. Immediately thereafter, she developed an anaphylactic reaction, but survived with prompt treatment. During subsequent follow-up, she could recall three prior episodes of wheezing and difficulty breathing after eating peanut-related foods. The first episode occurred 4 days after the transplant. Prior to her transplant, she never had problems eating peanuts. Skin-prick testing confirmed peanut sensitization. She avoided peanuts and, although her skin-prick test became negative, she still manifested peanut allergy when formally challenged orally with the food. She was advised to continue abstaining from all peanut-related foods. This case emphasizes the importance of considering donor allergy transfer when caring for all solid-organ transplant recipients in order to avoid a life-threatening event.