Acute Myocardial Infarction on Contrast-Enhanced Computed Tomography

A 79-year-old man presented to our emergency department with sudden back pain. Laboratory results showed CK 2836 U/L (normal range 30-160), CK-MB 393 U/L (&lt;25), D-dimer 1.4 μg/ mL (&lt;1), BNP 37.9 pg/mL (&lt;19.5), cTnl 0.133ng/mL (&lt;0.028) and electrocardiogram showed ST elevation in V1~6. Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) was suspected. Because of the back pain, acute aortic dissection (AAD) and pulmonary thromboembolism (PE) needed to be ruled out and contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT) was performed.</p

Wandering carotid arteries: Reciprocating change between normal and retropharyngeal positions on serial CT studies

Positional change in the retropharyngeal carotid artery, a rare phenomenon over time, is even rarer in previous reports, and it is important to be aware of this before any neck surgical procedure. A woman in her 50s underwent an anterior maxillectomy for upper gingival cancer, without neck dissection. The patient had medical histories of diabetes mellitus and liver dysfunction, with unremarkable family histories. Serial neck contrast-enhanced computed tomography for detecting locoregional recurrence had been performed as a follow-up during 4 years. A radiological course of moving carotid arteries in serial computed tomography studies showed reciprocating positional changes (wandering) between normal and retropharyngeal regions. There was no locoregional recurrence of the gingival cancer. This is the first case to describe a so-rare presentation of wandering carotid arteries. It is important for clinicians to be aware of a wandering carotid artery to avoid potentially fatal complications