Intracoronary nisoldipine: effects on acute myocardial ischemia during coronary angioplasty.

The effects on ischemic myocardium of 0.05 mg nisoldipine given by intracoronary injection were studied in 22 patients subjected to percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty. The angioplasty balloon was inflated for periods of 60 seconds. During the occlusion period, pulmonary wedge pressure was measured, an intracoronary epicardial ECG recorded, and ventricular volumes and ejection fraction were determined by means of digital subtraction angiography. After the intracoronary administration of nisoldipine, the onset of the rise in diastolic filling pressure was slightly delayed from 29 to 36 seconds. While affecting neither the rise in filling pressure nor the increase in end-diastolic and end-systolic volumes after 60 seconds of ischemia, nisoldipine delayed the occurrence (from 13 to 33 seconds; p less than 0.005) and reduced the extent (from 1.5 to 0.6 mV; p less than 0.001) of ischemic ST elevation in the intracoronary ECG. After nisoldipine, anginal symptoms were clearly reduced during the ischemic phase in the majority of patients. These findings suggest that intracoronary pretreatment with nisoldipine leads to a regional protection of ischemic myocardium without any appreciable effect on ischemia-induced myocardial dysfunction.