Atrial natriuretic peptide after myocardial infarction.

Plasma concentrations of atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) after acute myocardial infarction were measured at fixed times during 48 hours in 38 patients admitted to the hospital within 4.4 hours after the onset of symptoms. Three hours after admission, the mean concentration of ANP was significantly lower than that at the time of admission. Thereafter it rose steadily until 15 hours after admission. ANP concentrations measured in each patient at the time of admission and the individual mean ANP concentrations during the first 48 hours after admission correlated weakly but significantly with the size of the infarct and the left ventricular function. Neither the site of the infarct, the occurrence of reperfusion, nor the number of coronary vessels affected influenced the ANP concentration. In 24 patients in whom cardiac catheterization was performed, no relationship between ANP concentrations and left ventricular pressures was observed. Determination of ANP concentrations seems to be of little value in assessing cardiac function after acute myocardial infarction.