Background: Recent data suggest that transplantation of autologous bone marrow cells (BMC) may contribute to myocardial repair after acute myocardial infarction. We hypothesized that patients with chronic ischemic cardiomyopathy could also benefit from autologous BMC transplantation in addition to established heart failure therapy.
Methods and results: Five patients with chronic ischemic cardiomyopathy caused by anterior myocardial infarction, 1.3+/-0.5 years ago and open infarct artery, received autologous mononuclear BMC transplantation via balloon catheter in the target vessel at the site of previous occlusion. Patients were followed up at 3 months (left heart catheterisation, 2D-echocardiography, dobutamine stress echocardiography, cardiopulmonary exercise testing) and at 12 months (2D-echocardiography, cardiopulmonary exercise testing). Follow-up examination showed no significant improvement neither in global, regional, and microvascular function, nor in physical performance.
Conclusions: In this pilot trial intracoronary transplantation of autologous, mononuclear BMC did not lead to any significant improvement in myocardial function and physical performance of patients with chronic ischemic heart disease.