Nilesh
R. Ghugre1, Jennifer Barry1, John C. Wood2,
Alan Moody3, Bradley H. Strauss4, Graham A. Wright1,
5
1Imaging Research, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada; 2Division of Cardiology, Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States; 3Department of Medical Imaging, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada; 4Schulich Heart Program, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada; 5Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
Reperfusion hemorrhage is an independent predictor of adverse left-ventricular remodeling following acute myocardial infarction. The role of iron chelation in hemorrhagic myocardial infarction has not yet been explored. The study involved serial imaging of two groups of animals subjected to a 90 min coronary occlusion followed by reperfusion with and without the iron chelator, deferiprone. Deferiprone was able to penetrate the infarct zone and was also effective in neutralizing hemorrhagic byproducts. Elimination of hemorrhage resulted in faster resolution of edema and normal ventricular volumes, representing a beneficial remodeling process. Tissue characterization by quantitative MRI (T2, T2* mapping) can offer insights into the interaction between the hemorrhage and iron chelator post-infarction. Iron chelation could potentially serve as an adjunctive therapy in hemorrhagic infarction.