Coronary stent implantation in a septal perforator artery - Case report and review of the literature

Septal perforator arteries play an important role in the blood supply of th e anterior interventricular septum. Their intramyocardial course makes them inaccessible for coronary bypass revascularization. Although modern cathet er-based techniques might be superior to coronary bypass grafting in offeri ng the most complete revascularization in selected patient populations, a s ystematic review of the literature revealed a paucity of data regarding the outcome of these patients. The present report describes coronary stent imp lantation in a dominant septal perforator artery and the analysis of the an atomic relationship between the stent and the intraventricular septum using a new imaging technique, catheter-based intracardiac ultrasound.