AIMS Intravascular inflammatory events during ischaemia/reperfusion injury following coronary angioplasty alter and denudate the endothelium of its natural anticoagulant heparan sulfate proteoglycan (HSPG) layer, contributing to myocardial tissue damage. We propose that locally targeted cytoprotection of ischaemic myocardium with the glycosaminoglycan analogue dextran sulfate (DXS, MW 5000) may...

BACKGROUND Severe cardiovascular complications are among the most important causes of mortality in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients. AIM To assess the usefulness of echocardiography, ECG, and coronary artery calcium scoring (CACS) in the detection of myocardial ischaemia in SLE patients compared to single photon emission computerised tomography (SPECT) and to assess their five-year...

Signs of early myocardial ischaemia are the most powerful available predictors of myocardial infarction and CHD death. The main primary risk factors are of undiminished importance in such persons, but screening for myocardial ischaemia is not recommended without evidence that intervention at this late stage is effective. Estimates are presented of the relative importance to individuals of the m...

Aims Intravascular inflammatory events during ischaemia/reperfusion injury following coronary angioplasty alter and denudate the endothelium of its natural anticoagulant heparan sulfate proteoglycan (HSPG) layer, contributing to myocardial tissue damage. We propose that locally targeted cytoprotection of ischaemic myocardium with the glycosaminoglycan analogue dextran sulfate (DXS, MW 5000) may...

Platelets activated during experimental acute myocardial infarction (AMI) contribute to myocardial injury. This study aimed to investigate whether platelets from patients with AMI increase myocardial injury after ischaemia and reperfusion in isolated rat hearts and the modification of this effect by the P2Y12 receptor antagonist cangrelor and the glycoprotein IIb/IIIa receptor blocker abciximab...

INTRODUCTION The integration of reactive oxygen species is strongly associated with important pathophysiological mechanisms that mediate myocardial ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R) damage. Pyruvate is an efficacious scavenger of reactive oxygen species and a previous study has shown that ethyl pyruvate (EP) has a myocardial protective effect against regional I/R damage in an in vivo rat model. The p...

OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to estimate the value of preoperative electrocardiographic (ECG) monitoring in predicting postoperative cardiac events in patients undergoing abdominal aortic surgery. DESIGN A prospective open study. SETTING University Hospital. MATERIALS One hundred consecutive patients were studied before aortic or aortofemoral surgery by ambulatory ECG monitori...

To the Editor: Quintin et al. recently suggested that clonidine, given as premeditation, might decrease the incidence of myocardial ischaemia in patients at risk. As the number of patients of this study was limited, firm conclusions depend on the results of other similar studies. We recently conducted a double-blind study to assess the effect of epidur:al clonidine on postoperative myocardial i...

To understand the pathology of myocardial ischaemia detailed knowledge of the anatomy and physiology of the coronary arterial tree is required. The anatomy of the major coronary arteries running on the epicardial surface of the heart has been common knowledge for years. The equally important micro-anatomy of vessels within the myocardium has been neglected along with the physiology of intramyoc...

OBJECTIVES The present study addresses whether the mechanism of anti-arrhythmic protection by ischaemic preconditioning involves depletion of myocardial catecholamines. METHODS In a randomised series of studies isolated rat hearts, perfused with whole blood, underwent episodes of regional ischaemia and reperfusion induced with a snare around the left coronary artery. Control hearts (Group 1, ...