Doctors at KIMS Saveera Hospital, Anantapur, have treated a 60-year-old woman who suffered a severe heart attack caused by a massive blood clot completely blocking a major coronary artery. The medical team used an advanced mechanical thrombectomy technique involving the CATRx catheter and Penumbra aspiration thrombectomy system after conventional clot-removal methods failed to restore adequate blood flow.
The woman, R. Annapurna, of Guntakal in Anantapur district, visited the hospital with symptoms of an acute heart attack. An electrocardiogram (ECG) and other investigations confirmed an inferior wall myocardial infarction (IWMI), indicating a heart attack affecting the lower portion of the heart.
An emergency coronary angiogram revealed that the patient’s coronary arteries were abnormally enlarged, a condition known as coronary artery ectasia. The right coronary artery (RCA), a major blood vessel supplying the heart, was completely blocked by an extensive blood clot.
The doctors connected the CATRx catheter to the Penumbra aspiration thrombectomy system and performed repeated aspiration to remove the extensive clot obstructing the artery. This enabled effective clot removal and significantly improved blood flow. Following clot extraction, balloon angioplasty was performed, and two coronary stents were deployed in the affected segment to restore and maintain blood flow.
A subsequent angiogram confirmed successful restoration of blood circulation, achieving TIMI grade 3 flow, which indicates normal blood flow through the treated coronary artery. The stents were adequately expanded, and no significant procedural complications were observed.
Published - October 05, 2026 07:45 pm IST