Polycystic kidney disease as a new risk factor for coronary events.

BACKGROUND

The association between coronary and/or other arterial aneurysms and polycystic kidney disease is well known. While myocardial infarction is a possible complication of atheroscletotic coronary aneurysms, it is reasonable to assume that CA in patients with PKD may make them prone for a similar complication.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the possible occurrence of CA and MI in first-order relatives of a patient with PKD, CA and MI.

PATIENTS: We studied 12 family members: 2 parents, 8 sisters and 2 brothers of a young woman who was incidentally diagnosed as having a MI, while her mother was known to have PKD. We used electrocardiogram, thallium-image test, and transthoracic echocardiography to determine MI, ultrasonography of the kidney to determine PKD, and coronary angiography and ventriculography to determine CA and MI, respectively.

RESULTS

PKD was detected in seven family members, while CA and MI were found in five and three of them, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

In a family with PKD we detected a high prevalence of CA, with MI as a complication of the latter.