Living with only the Right Arery

[jeans5353]

I am 42 mother of three that had a massive heart attack on Nov 18 2010 and I was told that I was only born with my right artery that my LAD and Circumflex arteries were never developed.  I have three small children and so I'm asking how long can I live with this diagnosis??  I'm being told that Heart Transplant is my only option!!  I don't drink, smoke or have high BP or cholesterol. Do you know anyone that is living with this or any support information???

[CCF HeartMD-1]

So, I have confirmed that this congenital anomaly you have is VERY RARE, meaning only a few case reports of this!!   There are no support groups for this exact congenital heart defect (meaning you were born with this = congenital), however there is a support groups for patients with congenital heart disease (different heart problems) which you may be interested in.  

See below:


CongenitalHeartDefects.com
Information and resources for people with CHD, including definitions of medical terms, hospitals caring for people with CHDs, links to support groups, articles regarding CHDs, and resources for the CHD community.

www.congenitalheartdefects.com
For questions or more information, call Anna Jaworski, toll-free at 888.222.4649 or at 254.778.4770.
Baby Hearts Press
3910 Sierra Blanca Blvd.
Temple, TX 76502-1662


Hope this helps.  Good Luck!

[CCF HeartMD-1]

This is very, very rare and I cannot say that I have ever seen this.  My guess is that your right coronary artery does supply much of the territory that your LAD and circumflex would normally supply but maybe not enough.  This is definitely a congenital anomaly.  I do not personally know of any patients who are living with this anomaly or a support group but there is a heart failure specialist here at the Cleveland Clinic who has seen a lot of anomalies in the past and I can check with him, Dr. Robert Hobbs.  

I will get back to you.