Introduction
Flash pulmonary edema (FPE) is a remarkable and life-threatening
condition caused by an imbalance in the fluid homeostasis in the
pulmonary vascular bed, which results from elevated left-sided cardiac
filling pressures along with endothelial dysfunction and increased
permeability of pulmonary capillaries.(1, 2)
Common causes of FPE are myocardial ischemia, hypertensive emergencies,
tachyarrhythmias, and acute mitral or aortic valve regurgitation.
Bilateral atheromatous renovascular disease and pheochromocytoma are
also other predisposing factors.(3)
FPE can occur during cardiac catheterization procedures at any time. The
immediate diagnosis and management of this critical condition are
imperative to stabilize the patient as soon as possible and prevent
unfortunate consequences.
This report presents a 51-year-old female with a history of
hypertension, degenerated bioprosthetic aortic valve, and severe
valvular dysfunction who was a candidate for redo valve surgery and
developed acute FPE before coronary angiography.