A papillary muscle rupture after myocardial infarction can cause which problem?

A papillary muscle rupture after myocardial infarction can cause which problem?

• A. Atrial fibrillation
• B. Acute mitral regurgitation
• C. Ventricular septal defect
• D. Dressler's syndrome

Answer: (B)

Papillary muscles keep the mitral valve leaflets properly tethered so they close tightly during systole. When one ruptures after a myocardial infarction, the mitral valve can no longer coapt, causing sudden and severe mitral regurgitation. The blood that should be pumped forward into the aorta is regurgitated back into the left atrium, rapidly raising left atrial and pulmonary venous pressures and leading to pulmonary edema and low forward cardiac output with hypotension. This is an emergency mechanical complication that typically requires urgent hemodynamic stabilization and definitive surgical repair or replacement of the mitral valve. Other post‑MI problems like atrial fibrillation, a ventricular septal defect, or Dressler’s syndrome have different mechanisms and are not caused by papillary muscle rupture.

Papillary muscles keep the mitral valve leaflets properly tethered so they close tightly during systole. When one ruptures after a myocardial infarction, the mitral valve can no longer coapt, causing sudden and severe mitral regurgitation. The blood that should be pumped forward into the aorta is regurgitated back into the left atrium, rapidly raising left atrial and pulmonary venous pressures and leading to pulmonary edema and low forward cardiac output with hypotension. This is an emergency mechanical complication that typically requires urgent hemodynamic stabilization and definitive surgical repair or replacement of the mitral valve. Other post‑MI problems like atrial fibrillation, a ventricular septal defect, or Dressler’s syndrome have different mechanisms and are not caused by papillary muscle rupture.