Unligated Left Internal Mammary Artery Side Branch Resulting in Coronary Artery Steal Syndrome

Whether internal mammary artery side branches have the potential for hemodynamically significant flow steal in cases of postcoronary surgery ischemia remains a controversial issue. We present a case in which coil embolization of two unligated side branches resulted in symptomatic improvement and resolution of ischemia as evidenced by myoview imaging. (J Card Surg 2011;26:487-490)