title: Cardiologists are living through exciting times. The example of postconditioning to protect the human heart during revascularization.
abstract: The exciting work the group of Jennings, published in Circulation in 1986, has established a new and powerful form of cardioprotection, whereby exposure to short bouts of repeated ischemia interspersed by reperfusion protects from a subsequent prolonged and potentially very serious major ischemic attack. Similar protection by postconditioning can be achieved by short bursts of ischemia just after the onset of mechanical reperfusion in acute myocardial infarction. Of interest, it has taken almost 20 years of intense work to bring all the important preconditioning ideas to clinical reality in the form of postconditioning. Once cardiologists are fully awoken to the idea of attacking reperfusion induced myocardial cell death, then this area will be set to develop as a major and novel target in the therapy of acute myocardial infarction.
authors.forename: L H
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Opie
mesh_terms: D002309:Cardiology / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D019157:Ischemic Preconditioning, Myocardial; D015428:Myocardial Reperfusion Injury / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D009204:Myocardial Revascularization / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000379:methods*