[Aberrant origin of the left coronary artery from the pulmonary artery as cause of ventricular fibrillation in a young woman].

An anomalous left coronary artery originating from the pulmonary artery is a rare, but frequently lethal congenital disorder. A wide range of symptoms due to heart failure and myocardial ischaemia may appear soon after birth. We describe a young woman who was admitted to the hospital after resuscitation for ventricular fibrillation. An anomalous origin of the left coronary artery from the pulmonary trunk was diagnosed. An echocardiographic evaluation in this adult patient illustrated the haemodynamic disturbances in the coronary circulation. The thallium scintigram showed reversible perfusion defects on exercise. Ischaemia may be implicated in the pathogenesis of the arrhythmia. Our patient was treated with an arterial graft and ligation of the left coronary artery at its origin.