Abciximab has been shown to have beneficial effects beyond the improvement in the patency of an infarct-related artery and the microvascular integrity. However, it remains uncertain whether abciximab may lead to beneficial effects on the left ventricular remodeling in patients with an acute myocardial infarction, treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Therefore, whether abciximab is effective in the left ventricular remodeling in patients with acute myocardial infarction, treated with primary PCI, was investigated.

The study included 28 patients with an acute myocardial infarction (1 vessel disease) that had received either a primary PCI alone (group A, n=14) or an abciximab+primary PCI (group B, n=14). The baseline characteristics of the two groups were similar, with the exception of a thrombusburden lesion. All patients were examined by echocardiography within 72 hours, and at an average 11.7 months after the acute myocardial infarction. The change in the left ventricular end-diastolic volume index, end-systolic volume index and ejection fraction, between the two groups, were compared.

At an average follow-up of 11.7 months, the left ventricular volume indices were smaller, and the left ventricular ejection fraction higher, compared with those at the baseline in each group. The change of the left ventricular end-diastolic volume index (-7±3 mL/m² vs. -9±2 mL/m², p=0.56), the left ventricular end-systolic volume index (-8±3 mL/m² vs. -9±2 mL/m², p=0.73) and the left ventricular ejection fraction (7±3% vs. 9±2%, p=0.49) did not show significant differences between groups A and B.

These results suggest that abciximab does not improve the left ventricular remodeling in patient with an acute myocardial infarction, treated with primary PCI.