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OBJECTIVE To investigate the effects of salvianolic acid B (SA-B) on cardiovascular endothelial cell function and platelet activation during myocardial ischemia-reperfusion in rabbits. METHODS A total of 24 New Zealand white rabbits were randomly divided into sham-operated group, ischemia-reperfusion group (untreated group) and SA-B group. The hearts of rabbits in untreated group and SA-B group underwent half an hour of left anterior descending coronary artery (LADCA) occlusion via ligation technology, which was followed by 4 hours of reperfusion to prepared ischemia-reperfusion injury model in vivo. For sham-operated group, the animals were not subjected to occlusion of LADCA. In SA-B treatment group the rabbits were intravenously administered SA-B immediately after LADCA occlusion, and the other two groups were given normal saline in the same way instead of SA-B. The jugular vein bloods of animals were collected before LADCA ligation, half an hour after ligation and after 1-, 4-hour reperfusion, respectively. The content of plasma nitric oxide (NO) was determined by nitrate reductase process. Radioimmunoassay was applied to detect the endothelin (ET) content in plasma and the count of alpha-granule membrane protein-140 (GMP-140) on platelet surface to identify the activation of the platelet. RESULTS No significant difference was observed before and after sham LADCA occlusion in sham-operated group in the contents of NO and ET in plasma (P>0.05), neither was the count of GMP-140 on platelet surface (P>0.05). The content of NO in plasma detected 0.5 h after LADCA occlusion was significantly decreased in untreated group compared with the sham-operated group at the corresponding time, and they were also much lower than that before LADCA occlusion in the sham-operated group (P

Background and Objectives:The TIMI myocardial perfusion (TMP) grade is known as one of the methods to assess the viability of the myocardium in ischemic heart disease. This study was designed to assess the value of TMP grade itself and to evaluate the correlation with coronary flow reserve (CFR) in the prediction of left ventricular remodeling and functional change after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Subjects and Methods:We measured CFR and TMP grade after successful elective PCI (diameter stenosis

Background and Objectives:Early resolution of ST-segment elevation improves the short and long-term mortalities in acute myocardial infarction (AMI). However, the correlations between the ST segment resolution and microvascular integrity, or functional recovery of the left ventricle, were not explored. Subjects and Methods: The study population consisted of 42 AMI patients who received thrombolytic therapy (35 male, 54±11 years) and consecutive successful percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) (

Background and Objectives：It has been shown that the coronary flow reserve (CFR of an infarct related artery can predict left ventricular functional recovery following acute myocardial infarction (AMI. However, the prognostic value of CFR on the long-term clinical outcome of patients with an AMI has not been studied. Subjects and Methods：Using a Doppler guide wire, we measured the CFR in 130 patients with an AMI following successful intervention (6±3 days after onset of the AMI. Two-year follow-up was conducted with regard to end points, including：cardiac death, non-fatal AMI, and severe congestive heart failure (CHF；≥ NYHA III. Results：During the follow-ups, cardiac events occurred in 17 patients (5 deaths, 3 non-fatal AMIs and 9 severe CHFs. After analysis of the receiver operating characteristic curves, the best cut-off value for CFR in predicting cardiac events was 1.4 (sensitivity 76.5%, specificity 73.5%, accuracy 82.0%. With cardiac events as an end point, a 2-year Kaplan-Meier event survival analysis revealed that the patients with a CFR≤1.4 had a worse prognosis than those with a CFR>1.4 (Event free survival rates were 69.8% vs. 95.4%, respectively, p

Background and Objectives:Previous studies have indicated that side branch occlusion (SBO) remains a significant problem in coronary bifurcation lesions during percutaneous intervention. Subjects and Methods: To evaluate the predictors of SBO by intravascular ultrasound (IVUS), 35 patients (28 males, mean age 56± 11 years) were studied at their left anterior descending artery (LAD)-diagonal branch (DB) bifurcation lesions, prior to coronary intervention for the measurement of the following plaque characteristics:total plaque area (PA), PA of the branch-side semicircle, % area stenosis (%AS) of the LAD, the presence of bull’s eye in the DB, the diameter of the vessel and the ostial lumen of the DB, and the LAD-DB angle. SBO was defined as a persistant reduction in the TIMI flow to ≤1 by the end of the procedure. Results:The PA of the branch-side semicircle, the vessel diameter and the ostial lumen diameter of the DB all significantly affected the SBO. The total PA and the %AS of the LAD were not related to the SBO. Multivariate analysis identified that the PA of the branch-side semicircle was the only predictor of SBO (odds ratio 3.2, 95% confidence interval 1.3 to 8.6, p=0.015). Conclusion:It appears that the plaque distribution of LAD is a major determinant of SBO. These findings support the theory that the plaque shift (“snow plow effect”) may be the mechanism of the SBO following stenting. (Korean Circulation J 2002;32(8):655-665)

Background:The intimal thickening of coronary artery was understood as an early process in the beginning of atherosclerosis. However, the implication of intimal thickening as a morphologic change of coronary artery disease, on the coronary vascular hemodynamics has not been explored. Methods:To evaluate the effect of intimal thickening on the coronary vascular hemodynamics, we studied the extent of intimal thickening on intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) and the coronary vascular flow and resistance by using Doppler wire in left anterior descending coronary arteries after successful intervention in 40 patients (29 males, mean age 55±9 years) with coronary artery disease. Mean intimal index and mean lumen cross sectional area were determined by IVUS and coronary flow average peak velocity was obtained by using Doppler wire before and after intracoronary adenosine in distal artery to the stenosis. Coronary flow velocity reserve (CFR), volumetric coronary blood flow (CBF) and coronary vascular resistance index (CVRI) were calculated. Hyperemic pressureto-flow ratio (hyperemic mean aortic pressure/hyperemic volumetric coronary blood flow), ie, an index of minimal coronary vascular resistance (mCVR), was further derived. Results:Intimal index (mean 20.0± 8.3%) was significantly correlated with CVRI (mean 0.33±0.14, r=0.37, p=0.02) and mCVR (mean 0.81± 0.40 mmHg/ml/min, r=0.36, p=0.02). However, there was no correlation with CBF and CFR. Conclusion: The CVRI and mCVR, the indices coronary microvascular resistance, were significantly related to the degree of intimal thickness of coronary artery. The extent of intimal thickness of coronary artery on IVUS study may be related to microvascular integrity. (Korean Circulation J 2001;31(1):54-62)