Effectiveness of Defibrotide in the Treatment of Acute Myocardial Infarction

Abstract

Defibrotide (D) is an extractive polydesoxyribonucleotide. In preclinical studies the product was shown to be active as a pro -fibrinolytic, antithrombotic and thrombolytic agent while comply tely devoid of anticoagulant activity. In animal models, D was found to afford striking protection from the effects of acute lethal and non lethal myocardial ischemia as well as from myo -cardial injury following reperfusion. In this open single - blim trial, D was administered to patients with acute myocardial infaj ction (AMI) for the prevention of complicating arrhythmias; throy bus formation, pericarditis, etc.Sixty patients with AMI were divided randomly into two groups of 30 patients each. One group was treated with D by 6-hour drip infusion for 3 consecutive days (2.8 g on the first day, then 2.4 g daily). The other group was treated with equal volumes of physiological salt solution. All patients received conventional trea_t ment for AMI. The two trial groups were sufficiently homogeneous in terms of AMI type, age and sex distribution, PCT, Forrester index, Holter, and Peel index. D treatment proved effective in reducing the incidence of severe arrhythmia (p < 0.05), thrombus formation (p < 0.05), and pericarditis (p < 0.01). CPK, TT and PTT readings were not modified by the treatment; the incidence of post-AMI angina and the number of deaths (4 in each group) were similar in the two groups. The results of this pilot study are encouraging; further clinical trials are currently in progress to assess D activity in larger groups of patients treated with the product at higher dosages.