myocardial dysfunction is a major complication in cardiac surgery that needs inotropic support. this study evaluates the effect of milrinone on patients with low ventricular ejection fraction undergoing off- pump coronary artery bypass graft (opcab). the present study is designed to evaluate the effect of milrinone on myocardial dysfunction. eighty patients with low ventricular ejection fractio...

BACKGROUND The mechanism through which ischemic preconditioning causes cardioprotection is unknown. The present study investigated the role of stunning in preconditioning. METHODS AND RESULTS We studied three different protocols of preconditioning: two cycles of 2-minute ischemia separated by 5-minute reperfusion (2'PC), one cycle of 5-minute ischemia by 5-minute reperfusion (5'PC1), and two ...

OBJECTIVE To amplify the description of myocardial stunning. DESIGN Control versus 30 min after a 20 min no flow ischaemia. EXPERIMENTAL ANIMALS 15 isolated rabbit hearts perfused with erythrocyte suspension. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Left ventricular systolic function in terms of aortic flow, peak systolic pressure (LVPmax), dP/dtmax, and the end systolic pressure-volume relation (ESPVR); ea...

Recent studies suggest that oxygen-derived free radicals contribute to the pathogenesis of postischemic myocardial dysfunction (myocardial "stunning"). This concept, however, is predicated exclusively on results obtained in open-chest preparations, which are subject to the confounding influence of many unphysiological conditions. The lack of supporting evidence in more physiological animal mode...

Although Src protein tyrosine kinases (PTKs) have been shown to be essential in late preconditioning (PC) against myocardial stunning, their role in triggering versus mediating late PC against myocardial infarction remains unclear. Four groups of conscious rabbits were subjected to a 30-min coronary occlusion on day 2, with or without PC ischemia on day 1. Administration of the Src PTK inhibito...

Myocardial stunning is a form of reversible myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury associated with systolic and diastolic contractile dysfunction. In the isolated rat heart model, myocardial stunning is characterized by specific C-terminal proteolysis of the myofilament protein, troponin I (cTnI) that yields cTnI1-193. To determine the effect of this particular C-terminal truncation of cTnI, wi...

BACKGROUND Administration of Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD) without catalase fails to alleviate myocardial stunning, but extracellular SOD (Ec-SOD) may be more effective because it binds to heparan sulfate proteoglycans on the cellular glycocalyx. We therefore used in vivo gene transfer to increase systemic levels of Ec-SOD and determined whether this gene therapy protects against myocardial ...

RATIONALE During reperfusion of ischemic myocardium, a burst of hydroxyl radicals (OH) induces contractile dysfunction ("myocardial stunning"), and OH in the plasma of patients after myocardial infarction predict the development of heart failure. The effects of OH on myocardial function in patients with heart failure; however, have never been assessed. Furthermore, although ATP-dependent K+ cha...

Levosimendan is a new calcium sensitizer and K-ATP channel opener. Compared with other inodilators, it improves myocardial contractility without increasing oxygen requirements and induces peripheral and coronary vasodilation with a potential anti-stunning, anti-ischaemic effect. The documentation regarding levosimendan is one of the largest ever on the safety and efficacy of a new pharmacologic...

In phase I of this study, the rate of protein synthesis was measured by the incorporation of [3H]leucine into the protein pool in the heart of conscious rabbits. At 2 h after ischemic preconditioning (PC) with six 4-min occlusion/4-min reperfusion (O/R) cycles ( group II), the [3H]leucine content in the ischemic-reperfused region was increased by 82% compared with that in controls ( group I), i...