Vulnerable personality and Takotsubo cardiomyopathy consequent to emotional stressful events: a clinical case report

Submitted: December 9, 2015
Accepted: December 9, 2015
Published: December 9, 2015
Abstract Views: 3334
PDF: 786
Publisher's note
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

Authors

Introduction: Although the onset of Takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TTC) can be triggered by an acute, intense emotional stress, the exact pathogenic mechanisms still remain undefined. Presentation: A 58-year-old female was sent by ambulance to the Emergency Department (ED) for chest pain and ST elevations on ECG. Her chest pain began 3 hours before on admission after a domestic argument. Transthoracic echocardiogram showed severe systolic dysfunction with an ejection fraction of 20%. Cardiac catheterization revealed no significant coronary artery disease. The left ventriculogram showed apical ballooning with hyperdynamic proximal segments. A diagnosis of Takotsubo Cardiomyophaty (TTC) was made according to the Mayo Clinic 2008 criteria. The patient evolved with improvement of her condition and, therefore, was discharged from the hospital. Follow-up echocardiogram seven days later showed normal LV size and function with ejection fraction (EF) of 43%. Paykel Life Stress Event Scale identified as emotional trigger a domestic argument occurred 3 hours before symptom onset. History showed a major life stress event, death of a loved one, six months before symptoms. The patient underwent psychological assessment after hospital discharge by Emotional Regulation Questionnaire and BDI showing high suppression/ low reappraisal profile and moderate depression. Conclusion: This case highlights the hypothesis of a possible link between cognitive emotional processing and vulnerability to Takotsubo syndrome.

Dimensions

Altmetric

PlumX Metrics

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Citations

How to Cite

Compare, Angelo, Riccardo Proietti, Domenico Del Forno, Alessandra Vitelli, Alessandra Grieco, Luigi Maresca, and Francesco Giallauria. 2015. “Vulnerable Personality and Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy Consequent to Emotional Stressful Events: A Clinical Case Report”. Monaldi Archives for Chest Disease 76 (2). https://doi.org/10.4081/monaldi.2011.197.