Pharmacological therapy for myocardial reperfusion injury

In the ischemic myocardium, reperfusion is necessary for the salvage of cells and cardiac function. However, reperfusion itself causes ‘reperfusion injury’, leading to the damage of myocardial cells. This is reduced by several interventions, as measured by the limitation of infarct size or reduction...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Current opinion in pharmacology 2004-04, Vol.4 (2), p.147-153
Main Authors: Moukarbel, George V, Ayoub, Chakib M, Abchee, Antoine B
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Cardiovascular Agents - administration & dosage
Cardiovascular Agents - classification
Cardiovascular Agents - therapeutic use
Humans
Myocardial Reperfusion Injury - drug therapy
Myocardial Reperfusion Injury - prevention & control
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Summary:In the ischemic myocardium, reperfusion is necessary for the salvage of cells and cardiac function. However, reperfusion itself causes ‘reperfusion injury’, leading to the damage of myocardial cells. This is reduced by several interventions, as measured by the limitation of infarct size or reduction of arrhythmias. Pharmacological agents that protect against injury include Na +/H + exchanger inhibitors, antioxidants, calcium antagonists, renin-angiotensin system antagonists and adenosine. N-acetylcysteine, diltiazem, verapamil, enalaprilat and adenosine have all showed promising results in patients with acute myocardial infarction when given before reperfusion. Cariporide was beneficial when added to cardioplegia. However, their use in daily practice awaits results from large clinical trials.
ISSN:1471-4892
1471-4973
DOI:10.1016/j.coph.2003.10.012