Selective Autoretroperfusion Provides Substantial Cardioprotection in Swine: Incremental Improvements With Mild Hypothermia

Mild hypothermia (MH) and retroperfusion are 2 techniques proposed to reduce infarct size due to myocardial infarction. The authors evaluated the effects of focal MH combined with selective coronary venous autoretroperfusion (SARP) as an acute cardioprotective modality before percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in a swine model of left ventricular myocardial infarction. Significant reduction in infarct size with preservation of cardiac function and cardiomyocyte viability were achieved. The authors propose that SARP alone or in combination with MH may provide a clinically relevant percutaneous short-term option of cardiac support to high-risk patients undergoing PCI.