[Does reperfusion therapy reduce complications in acute inferior myocardial infarction?]

Both right ventricular infarction and complete atrioventricular block were frequently seen in patients with acute inferior myocardial infarction before the introduction of reperfusion therapy (RT). However, the effect of reperfusion therapy on these 2 complications is not well known. To evaluate the effect of reperfusion therapy in them, we retrospectively studied the in-hospital outcome of 103 consecutive patients with acute inferior myocardial infarction within 72 hr after the onset, 23 with right ventricular infarction and 36 with complete atrioventricular block. Patients were divided into 2 groups: RT group (n = 63) in which Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) III flow was obtained by reperfusion therapy within 24 hr after the onset, and the non-RT group (n = 40) in which TIMI III flow was not obtained or did not receive reperfusion therapy. Patients with right ventricular infarction in the RT group had a larger proportion of proximal occlusion of the right coronary artery and the absence of preinfarction angina. There were no effects of perfusion on complete atrioventricular block. In 23 patients with right ventricular infarction and 36 patients with complete atrioventricular block, in-hospital stay, duration of using temporary pacing and Swan-Ganz catheter were shorter in the RT group than the non-RT group. Reperfusion therapy does not decrease the incidence of both complications. However, successful reperfusion therapy results in a rapid improvement in hemodynamic instability and atrioventricular conduction injury, and early hospital discharge. Preinfarction angina may be associated with a protective effect against the development of these 2 complications.