doi: 10.1161/hc2601.093182
(Circulation. 2001;104:e1.)
© 2001 American Heart Association, Inc.
Images in Cardiovascular Medicine |
Aortic Thrombosis as a Complication of Paroxysmal Nocturnal Hemoglobinuria
From the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine (R.D.M.) and the Division of Vascular Surgery (J.M.P.), Mayo Clinic and Foundation for Education and Research, Rochester, Minn; and Mercy Cancer Center (W.W.B.), Mason City, Iowa.
Correspondence to Robert D. McBane II, MD, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Mayo Clinic and Foundation for Education and Research, 200 SW First St, Rochester, MN 55905. E-mail mcbane.robert{at}mayo.edu
A 55-year-old man was admitted for the rapid onset of severe pain, pallor, and paresthesia in the left foot. Three weeks earlier, he suddenly had developed bilateral lower-extremity claudication, which limited his ambulation to 30 feet. A diagnosis of paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria had been made in 1961 and later was confirmed by flow cytometry. Therapy had included corticosteroids with varying incremental dosing that was complicated by type II diabetes mellitus. Warfarin was added to his medical regimen in 1996 after a right hemispheric stroke and right renal infarction. For 6 months before admission, he had noted hematuria and fatigue with laboratory evidence of worsening hemolysis,requiring augmentation of his corticosteroid dose. The prothrombin time international normalized ratio at the time of admission was 2.7.
An aortogram performed soon after admission revealed a
normal aortic contour without plaque or aneurysm
(Figure 1
, left). Multiple filling defects were noted in the
abdominal aorta. The left popliteal artery was occluded
(Figure 2), as was the right tibioperoneal trunk, with the
right foot perfused by the anterior tibial artery only. CT
(Figure 1, right) revealed thrombus extending from the aortic
arch to the infrarenal aorta with multiple infarcts of the spleen,
liver, and
kidneys.
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