Survival without surgical repair of acute rupture of the right ventricular free wall.

Rupture of the myocardial free wall is an infrequent complication of acute myocardial infarction. Unless it occurs in a space confined by pericardial adhesions, only surgical emergency repair of ruptured myocardium can prevent death. In this paper we report the case of an 81-year-old woman who was admitted to the emergency room with cardiac tamponade, resulting from inferolateral acute myocardial infarction and a subsequent rupture of the right ventricular free wall, with the formation of pericardial thrombus and effusion. The patient refused to undergo any surgical or invasive intervention, and therefore she was only treated conservatively. Nevertheless, her condition improved dramatically, as her blood pressure increased and echocardiography abnormalities almost disappeared. Follow-up echocardiography 7 months post discharge was unremarkable. We believe that this rare case emphasizes that in special circumstances, such as creation of a thrombus that prevents more blood from extravasating, free-wall rupture without surgical repair is compatible with long-term survival.