Septal Rupture Complicating a Myocardial Infarction: A Case Report from the Cardiology Department of the Kara Teaching Hospital

Post- myocardial infarction ventricular septal rupture is a rare but very fatal complication if early and appropriate management is not provided or is delayed. Despite medical advances in treatment, the mortality rate associated with ventricular septal rupture following myocardial infarction remains very high. We report the case of a 65-year-old woman with a history of alcohol abuse, hospitalized in the cardiology department of Kara Teaching Hospital for an anteroseptal ST elevation myocardial infarction that was not treated with thrombolysis. The patients condition was marked by the occurrence of a ventricular septal rupture on the third day, followed by death on the fourth day, without surgical repair of the septum. This case illustrates the severity of the mechanical complications of myocardial infarction. The lack of cardiac surgery in Togo constitutes a fatal obstacle to the management of certain cardiac pathologies, such as post-myocardial infarction ventricular septal rupture. Hence the need to improve the local technical platform to ensure better patient care.