Effect of infarct site on diastolic time during exercise

To assess the difference in left ventricular performance during exercise between anterior (11 patients) and inferior (10 patients) myocardial infarction (MI) of equivalent size, patients performed a supine bicycle exercise 6 to 8 weeks after the first acute MI. All patients had negative exercise test results and despite no significant differences in HR, blood pressure and stroke volume index at peak exercise, pulmonary artery wedge pressure was significantly higher in anterior (35 +/- 7 mm Hg) than in inferior MI (27 +/- 9 mm Hg). Although there were no significant differences in electromechanical systole (QS2) and diastolic time (DT) at rest, a significant prolongation of QS2 with consequent shortening of DT (p < 0.01) was observed at peak exercise in anterior MI. In addition to decreased subendocardial coronary blood flow from increased left ventricular end-diastolic pressure, a disproportionate shortening of DT in anterior MI may initiate subendocardial ischemia in the noninfarcted segments, which may further impede subendocardial blood flow.