Cardiac arrest associated with sildenafil ingestion in a patient with an abnormal origin of the left coronary artery: case report

BACKGROUND: Left coronary artery arising from the right sinus of Valsalva is an uncommon congenital coro-nary anomaly that seems to be associated with sudden death in young patients. CASE PRESENTATION: We report a case of cardiac arrest in a 59-year-old patient after sexual intercourse and Silde-nafil ingestion. A coronary arteriography and an angiographic computed tomography scan subsequently revealed a LCA origin from the right aortic sinus along with an intramural course of the left main stem. In addition a distal stenosis of the right coronary artery was detected. After successful resuscitation without neurological deficits coronary artery bypass surgery was performed. CONCLUSION: To our knowledge, this is the first report demonstrating sudden cardiac arrest associated with Sildenafil ingestion in a patient with this type of coronary anomaly. The question arises, whether a cardiac screening is necessary before a Sildenafil therapy is initiated.