Highly effective compensatory mechanisms in a 76-year-old man with a coarctation of the aorta

We present a man who was diagnosed with coarctation of the aorta (CA) at th e age of 76. He had developed an extensive collateral circulation for maint aining the circulation below the CA. This compensatory mechanism was highly effective, since the patient had remained asymptomatic and in good health during most of his life. He died from intrahospitalary pneumonia, unrelated to CA. Long-term survival in patients with untreated CA is exceptional, wi th only 11 patients living into their 70s being previously reported, A revi ew of these cases is included. Copyright (C) 2000 S. Karger AG. Basel.