Patients treated with their own bone marrow stem cells after a heart attack experienced increased circulation within the heart, a study by Emory University School of Medicine physicians has found.
Principal investigator Arshed Quyyumi, MD, professor of medicine at Emory University School of Medicine, presents the results Monday at the American College of Cardiology conference in Orlando.
"These results show that treatment with a patient's own bone marrow stem cells has the potential to reduce long-term complications after a heart attack," Quyyumi says. "We are encouraged by these results and are planning to conduct a more extensive study."
A severe enough heart attack can lead to remodeling of the heart muscle and increased risk of heart failure and other complications.
Several groups of researchers around the world have reported clinical trials in which cells from the bone marrow are used to try to restore the heart's pumping power, with mixed results. This study was one of the first to use a preparation of bone marrow cells enriched for endothelial progenitor cells, which are thought to replenish the linings of blood vessels. Emory University, Vanderbilt University, The Lindner Research Center, Cincinnati, and Texas Heart Center in Houston participated.
In the clinical trial, which began in June 2006, 31 patients were treated by angioplasty and stent placement after a heart attack. Within a week after their heart attacks, 16 of the patients had bone marrow cells infused into the coronary artery where a blockage caused the heart attack.