Evaluation of Myocardial Bridging by Coronary Computed Tomography Evaluación del Puente Miocárdico por la Angiotomografía de las Coronarias

SUMMARY Introduction: The myocardial bridge (MB) is defined as a segment of an epicardial coronary artery that has an intramural course in the myocardium. Although MB is clinically silent in most cases, has been associated with myocardial ischemia, arrhythmias and sudden death. Coronary conventional angiography is the gold standard for detection of MB, but is invasive and cannot be sufficiently sensitive compared to autopsy studies. Recently, multislice computed tomography of coronary arteries (MCTCA) has allowed the detection of coronary artery course, including PM. Objectives: To evaluate MB prevalence in patients with suspected coronary artery disease undergoing MCTCA and to evaluate the predictive value of this method at medium term. Methods: During the period 2008 to 2011, 498 consecutive patients were examined by TMC for the diagnosis of coronary artery disease, being conducted to evaluate the presence of BM and followed for a mean follow-up of 23 months for the occurrence of cardiovascular hard events (death, hospitalization or revascularization). Results: Patients mean age was 55.3 ± 14.2, being male 71.1%. Among the patients, 7.6% (38 patients) showed MB. Main findings included angina pectoris in 40% and a positive stress test in 34%. 34.2% had atherosclerotic disease, and one patient had significant coronary stenosis. During follow-up, no patients showed adverse events. Conclusion: MCTCA is a noninvasive technique with high accuracy in anatomical evaluation of the coronary arteries and may be particularly useful to assess the incidence, location and morphology of myocardial bridging in vivo. Descriptors: Myocardial Bridging; Computed Tomography; Coronary Artery Disease RESUMEN