Complete rupture of the anterolateral papillary muscle caused by coronary spasm.

Papillary muscle rupture usually occurs as a catastrophic complication of acute myocardial infarction in patients with coronary artery stenosis; it is therefore less common in patients without coronary artery stenosis. We report the case of a 67-year old woman without coronary artery stenosis who suffered an acute anterolateral papillary muscle rupture and was successfully treated with mitral valve replacement. Evidence of coronary spasm was found on a coronary vasomotion test, suggesting that a high sensitivity to coronary spasm may explain a mechanism of isolated papillary muscle infarction.