Letter to the Editor

An Unusual Cause of Unstable Angina Pectoris in a Health Technician: Autophylebotomy

Authors: Mehmet Ozaydin, MD, Yasin Turker, MD, Ercan Varol, MD

Abstract

To the Editor:


A 56-year-old male health technician presented with fatigue and unstable angina pectoris. He had obesity, hypertension and a smoking habit as risk factors for coronary artery disease. EKG showed biphasic T waves in leads V2 through V6 (Fig.A). In the laboratory analysis, his hemoglobin value was 7 g/dL. On detailed questioning, his relatives stated that for the last 2 to 3 years, the patient had regularly drawn his own blood (20–30 mL) every week and thrown it away, with the belief that he had too much blood, and it was bad for his health. Coronary angiography, which was performed after increasing the hemoglobin value to >10 mg/dL with blood transfusions, showed normal coronary arteries. His symptoms ceased, and T waves became positive (Fig.B) with blood transfusions.

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References

1. Cannon CP, Braunwald E. Unstable angina and non-ST elevation myocardial infarction. In: Zipes DP, Libby P, Bonow R, Braunwald E (eds). Braunwald's Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine, 7th ed. Philadelphia, Elsevier Saunders, 2005, p 1243.