title: Cardioprotective effects of adenosine transport inhibition during reversible ischaemia in patients with coronary artery disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND: Adenosine plays a major role in protecting ischaemic myocardium and may potentiate ischaemic preconditioning. Nucleosine transport inhibition may enhance these favourable effects. DESIGN: Randomized, double blind, placebo controlled study, to investigate the haemodynamic and cardioprotective effects of nucleoside transport inhibition during ischaemia in patients with coronary artery disease. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Elective left anterior descending (LAD) coronary angioplasty was used to produce reversible ischaemia in 24 patients with stable angina and a single LAD lesion. They were randomized to receive either the nucleoside transport inhibitor draflazine or placebo. The study medication was infused between the 2nd and 3rd balloon inflation. The primary endpoint was ischaemia-induced wall motion abnormalities as measured by left septal echo amplitude, which was plotted against time to produce an area under the curve. RESULTS: No differences were observed in the systemic haemodynamics or the myocardial collateral circulation of the two groups. The ischaemia-induced regional wall motion abnormalities improved significantly after draflazine, while no difference was observed in the placebo group. This improvement was even more pronounced in patients with low caffeine levels compared with those with high caffeine levels. CONCLUSIONS: Draflazine, in the dose and route used, is associated with a significant improvement in regional myocardial function of the ischaemic area, without affecting systemic or collateral circulation, when compared with placebo. This implies that draflazine has a cardio-protective effect in ischaemic myocardium. High caffeine blood levels reduce these effects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Hospital "De Weezenlanden", Zwolle, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Jan Paul
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Ottervanger
authors.forename: Pavel
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gregor
authors.forename: Petr
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Widimsky
authors.forename: Felix
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zijlstra
authors.forename: Ed P de
authors.initials: EP
authors.lastname: Kluiver
authors.forename: Arnoud W van't
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Hof
authors.forename: Harry
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Suryapranata