The purpose of this study is to assess the relationship between left atrial (LA) size and outcome after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and to evaluate dynamic changes in LA size during long-term follow-up. Echocardiographic analyses were performed on 253 AMI patients (174 male and 79 female, 65.4 +/- 13.7 yr) undergoing PCI. These subjects were studied at baseline and at 12 months. Clinical follow-up were done at 30.8 +/- 7.5 months. We assessed LA volume index (LAVI) at AMI-onset and at 12-month. Change of LAVI was an independent predictor of new onset of atrial fibrillation or hospitalization for heart failure (P = 0.002). Subjects who survived the 12-month period displayed an increased LAVI mean of 1.86 +/- 4.01 mL/m2 (from 26.1 +/- 8.6 to 28.0 +/- 10.1 mL/m2, P < 0.001). The subject group that displayed an increased LAVI correlated with a low left ventricular ejection fraction, large left ventricle systolic and diastolic dimensions and an enlarged LA size. In conclusion, change of LAVI is useful parameter to predict subsequent adverse cardiac event in AMI patients. Post-AMI echocardiographic evaluation of LAVI provides important prognostic information that is significantly greater than that obtained from clinical and laboratory parameters alone.
Aged ; *Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary ; Echocardiography ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Heart Atria/pathology/physiopathology/ultrasonography ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Myocardial Infarction/*pathology/physiopathology/*therapy/ultrasonography ; Prognosis ; Time Factors

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the effects of Jiashen Prescription (, JSP) on myocardial infarction (MI) size and cardiac function at the early stage of MI in rats.

METHODSOne hundred male Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to sham-operation or MI induced by ligating the left anterior descending coronary artery. The rats with MI were treated with vehicle, JSP 3 and 6 g/(kg·d), or losartan 10 mg/(kg·d) for 1 week.

RESULTSCompared with the vehicle-treated MI rats, 6 g/(kg·d) JSP reduced MI size 3 days after MI (P<0.05), and attenuated the MI-induced increases in left ventricular end-diastolic and end-systolic dimension and decreases in fractional shortening and ejection fraction 1 week after MI (P<0.05). In addition, 6 g/(kg·d) JSP and losartan were equally effective in reducing MI size and enhancing cardiac functional recovery.

CONCLUSIONJSP reduces MI size and improves cardiac function after MI, suggesting that JSP has potential as a therapy for MI.

Animals ; Body Weight ; Cardiotonic Agents ; therapeutic use ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Heart Function Tests ; Male ; Myocardial Infarction ; diagnostic imaging ; drug therapy ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Myocardium ; pathology ; Organ Size ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Survival Analysis ; Ultrasonography