heart rupture

[Lydia__0]

  My father (age 76) suffered a heart attack, which he survived. He was in
  excellant health prior to the incident. By the evening his heart rate,
  blood pressure and EKG were normal. He had low cholesteral. He was unable
  to complete a stress test, so he underwent a heart catherization and angio.
  The results were that two of his arteries were had blockages. One they
  cleared with the angio. One they could not, however he had what they called
  collateral circulation. Due to his "excellant health" they recommended
  against bypass surgery. They were going to manage him with medication and
  weekly visits to the doctor. He was released from the coronary care unit to
  a regular room. We were getting good reports. Then the night before he was
  supposed to come home his heart ruptured and he died.
  What does this mean? Could this have been prevented, especially if he had
  the bypass. My mom saw him just hours before this occurred and he seemed
  fine. The rupture occurred ten days after the initial heart attack.
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Dear Lydia,
I am sorry to hear of your father's death.  Rupture of the heart following a heart attack is a rare but well known complication.  The reason it occurs is that the part of the heart muscle that has been damaged by the heart attack becomes thinned and weakened.  It may then completely break resulting in almost instantaneous death.  It is generally not a preventable complication.  My condolences to you and your family.
I hope you find this information useful.  Information provided in the heart forum is for general purposes only.  Only your physician can provide specific diagnoses and therapies.  Please feel free to write back with additional questions.
If you would like to make an appointment at the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center, please call 1-800-CCF-CARE or inquire online by using the Heart Center website at www.ccf.org/heartcenter.  The Heart Center website contains a directory of the cardiology staff that can be used to select the physician best suited to address your cardiac problem.

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