Intravenous verapamil therapy in imminent myocardial infarction

We studied 16 patients with small myocardial infarction who had further episodes of chest pain with ST-segment elevation, a sign of transmural myocardial ischemia and imminent infarction extension. Coronary angiography in 14 showed a critical lesion in 13. Intravenous verapamil abolished chest pain and ST-segment elevation. It caused a fall in right atrial and left ventricular end-diastolic pressures (LVEDP) and cardiac output, reflex systemic vasoconstriction, and a rise in systemic vascular resistance. There was no reflex tachycardia. Volume expansion raised LVEDP and restored a normal cardiac output. Accelerated junctional rhythm with isorhythmic A-V dissociation occurred in 5 patients. Two patients sustained a transmural infarction, 10 underwent coronary artery bypass grafting, and 4 are symptom-free with oral treatment. Intravenous treatment was an effective method of treating acute episodes of transmural myocardial ischemia and preventing their recurrence in patients with critical coronary artery narrowing. Continuous verapamil infusion stabilized the patients' condition and enabled smooth coronary angiography and induction of anesthesia for surgery.