NEW DELHI– Patients with weakened heart function who receive stem cell therapy soon after a heart attack may face a lower risk of developing heart failure, according to a new international study published in the BMJ.
Heart failure can occur after a heart attack when the heart muscle is severely damaged, reducing its ability to pump blood effectively. The condition may develop suddenly or over time, with symptoms such as shortness of breath, fatigue, swelling in the legs, and irregular heartbeat.
The study suggests that stem cell therapy could serve as a valuable add-on treatment to prevent post-heart attack complications, particularly heart failure and related hospitalizations.
Researchers from Queen Mary University of London and other international institutions evaluated the effects of delivering stem cells directly into the coronary arteries—a technique known as intracoronary infusion—shortly after a heart attack. They tracked outcomes over a three-year period.
“The results suggest that this technique may serve as a valuable adjunctive procedure after myocardial infarction to prevent the development of heart failure and reduce the risk of future adverse events,” the research team said.
The clinical trial included 396 patients, aged between 57 and 59, who had no prior history of heart disease and were treated at three teaching hospitals in Iran. All participants had suffered their first heart attack.
Among them, 136 patients received an intracoronary infusion of allogenic Wharton’s jelly-derived mesenchymal stem cells within three to seven days of their heart attack, alongside standard medical care. The remaining 260 patients received standard treatment alone.
The study found that those who received stem cell therapy had significantly lower rates of heart failure (2.77 versus 6.48 cases per 100 person-years), fewer hospital readmissions for heart failure (0.92 versus 4.20 per 100 person-years), and reduced combined rates of cardiovascular death or readmission for heart attack or heart failure (2.8 versus 7.16 per 100 person-years).
Although the intervention did not show a statistically significant reduction in hospital readmissions for heart attack or cardiovascular death alone, patients who underwent stem cell therapy demonstrated a notably greater improvement in heart function within six months compared to the control group.
Researchers emphasized the need for larger, long-term trials to confirm the findings and to better understand how stem cell therapy could be integrated into post-heart attack care. (Source: IANS)
