[Behavior of blood ferritin in acute myocardial infarct]

Ferritin (F) is an iron-protein (molecular weight 445.000) present in various organs including the heart. Using the immunoenzymatic method (Ferrizyme Abbott), ferritinemia (Fe) was determined daily in 28 patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). A significant rise was revealed, already evident in the first few days 8-9 after with Fe gradually returns to baseline levels. The results have shown that this pattern is not evident in patients with angina, heart failure, valve defects, pericarditis or cor pulmonale and may thus be considered a reliable, if not early, marker of myocardial cytolysis. In those cases studied no correlations were observed between CPK and Fe peak or between these and clinical intensity of AMI.