ORLANDO, Fla. -- A research network led by a Mayo Clinic physician found that stem cells obtained from bone marrow delivered two to three weeks after a person has a heart attack did not improve heart function. This is the first study to systematically examine the timing and method of stem cell delivery and provides vital information for the field of cell therapy.
The results were presented this morning at the 2011 Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association Meeting in Orlando, Fla. They also will be published online in JAMA to coincide with the presentation.
"Some data suggests that stem cell therapy is helpful within the first week after a heart attack," says Robert Simari, M.D., cardiologist at Mayo Clinic and chairman of the Cardiovascular Cell Therapy Research Network (CCTRN). The network includes five clinics and other sites supported by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health. "Our study helps identify the limits of when stem cell therapy might be beneficial. We now know that this therapy should not be extended two to three weeks after a heart attack. While it is safe to do so, we did not find any benefit to heart function after six months."
Between July 2008 and February 2011, 87 people with heart attacks and moderate to severe left ventricular dysfunction received their own bone marrow mononuclear stem cells (BMCs) or placebo. The study, called LateTIME, developed a standardized method of processing the BMCs and was the first such trial to provide a uniform dose to each participant.
The researchers assessed heart function through a cardiac MRI by measuring the ejection fraction, or what percentage of blood is pumped out of the left ventricle during each contraction. No significant differences were found in the cardiac function readings between baseline and six months in the BMC group (from 48.7 percent to 49.2 percent) or the placebo group (from 45.3 pe
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| Contact: Traci Klein newsbureau@mayo.edu 507-284-5005 Mayo Clinic Source:Eurekalert |