Colchicine and myocardial infarction: A review

The inflammatory response is frequent after acute myocardial infarction, and may worsen ischaemia-reperfusion injuries, leading to increased infarct size and poor prognosis. Therefore, inflammation may be a promising therapeutic target, and anti-inflammatory drugs appear to be potential additional treatments in this context. Among these treatments, colchicine-a well-known drug that has been used for centuries in clinical practice for rheumatism-may represent the ideal candidate. Indeed, colchicine exerts direct anti-inflammatory and pleiotropic effects, with potential anti-arrhythmic, anti-fibrotic and anti-atherosclerotic effects, which are particularly interesting in this population of patients. The effects of colchicine in the context of acute myocardial infarction were first studied in preclinical models, with a decrease in inflammation demonstrated in several in vitro and in vivo models. Moreover, a decrease in infarct size and positive effects on haemodynamic variables were also recently demonstrated in a mouse model. Regarding clinical studies, the positive effect of colchicine in stable coronary disease and atherosclerosis was assessed initially. More recently, the value of colchicine in acute myocardial infarction has been studied, showing a positive effect on inflammation and infarct size reduction. Finally, a randomised trial (the COLCOT study) has shown a reduction in outcomes in patients with acute coronary syndrome treated with colchicine.